Chasing Daydreams
by katybaggins
Summary: Flynn Rider had one goal: steal the lost princess's crown, sell it, and buy the island he always dreamed of. However, all that changed the day he meet the girl with one very hard frying pan- and the crazy long hair.   Companion to Beyond Appearances
1. Prologue and Ch 1

AN: It is with great pleasure that I present to you, the companion to Beyond Appearances, Chasing Daydreams featuring our favorite thief, Flynn Rider. I can't even tell you how much I'm enjoying writing this so far; i'm just getting a complete kick out of it (it's just so nice to write this...and once I started, he started sounding EXACTLY how i wanted him to. It is, in a word, stupendous). And I hope you like it too.

Leave me a review please and tell me how you like it. :)

Disclaimer: Since I am using much of Disney's dialogue I'm putting one of these in again because I don't own Tangled.

Much love to my loyal readers! I hope this lives up to your expectations.

FL 6_**  
><strong>_

_**Chasing Daydreams**_

_**Prologue**_

"I learn by going where I have to go."

-Theodore Roethke, 'The Waking'

"Dreams are like stars...you may never touch them, but if you follow them they will lead you to your destiny."

-Unknown

_**I **_know what they say about me:they say that I'm a thief and a liar. And as such, I do not deserve to live, let alone be the fiancé of Princess Rapunzel of Corona. Well, in a way, that's true. Oh stop, stop saying that I never tell the truth, and besides that, I tend to exaggerate. Oh yes, I know what you've _heard _about me too: that I'm overly confident, almost arrogant. Well, that's true as well. But that doesn't mean that I can't admit the truth when I want in this case I do-I want people to know the truth of how Rapunzel and I met so they'll stop this unending gossiping and slandering. Then they'll know what really happened, and how I really was. And maybe, just maybe, they'll realize what I did for her, and realize how much I care for her and love her.

So I begin- this is the story of how I died…

Hold on. Now, normally when I tell this story I say something along the lines of this story isn't even mine, it's the story of a girl, a girl named Rapunzel, blah blah blah. But this time is different- this time I am actually telling my story, and not hers. But don't get the wrong impression. She's a major part of this story (of course!), but I'm the main character, the hero, the protagonist.

That said, I resume:

This is the story of how I died….

_**Chapter 1-Flynn vs the Chase  
><strong>_

**I** know what you're thinking- what kind of story is this? Why would I want to hear a story about how you die? Well, personally, if you are like many in Corona, you'll be_ glad _that I died, even if you won't be as glad that I didn't stay dead (of course not. Because if I had, how could I be talking to you?). But for those who _don't_ actually hate my guts, you'll be glad to hear that this story also has a happy theme too. This is also the story of how I found a new dream to follow, instead of a silly daydream. And the story of how I met the most wonderful girl in the whole world.

But meeting the most wonderful girl in the world was the last thing on my mind on that eventful and fateful day over a year ago. And you know what the funny thing is? It started like any other normal day (Isn't it funny how some days you wake up thinking that it's just a normal day, but it ends up changing your life forever?). That is, for me, at least. Most people don't wake up intending to steal the lost princess's crown. But I was such a man, and that's what I fully intended to do that day. I was successful, too, but that's foreshadowing.

Anyway, that day my plan was to wake up early, meet the Stabbington brothers (Morris of the Eyepatch and Thor of the Sideburns), steal the crown, and high-tail it out of Corona.

You might be curious as to how I meet Morris and Thor in the first place. Or maybe you aren't. But even if you're _not _interested, I'm going to tell you anyway. On one spring evening- I guess it would be around three years ago- I was at my favorite pub, The Red Dragon, in my usual booth, drinking my usual glass of flip, when they approached me. They asked me in low tones if I was that incredibly intelligent, mind-blowingly handsome, unbelievably witty….Okay, fine. They didn't really ask me that. You're pretty sharp, aren't you? But they did ask if I was that expert thief Flynn Rider. To which I said it depended on who was asking and why they were asking. To which Thor (who was smarter than his brother, even then, but then it doesn't take much. Morris wasn't much of a talker…or a thinker. I was smarter than both of them put together, which I _will _prove you later) said that they had a job to do and needed my help. To which I said…..You're squirming again. Sorry (even though I don't understand why you find this boring. Personally, I find every single detail of my life perpetually fascinating).

Anyway, to make a long story short, I agreed to help them….for a commission, of course. You didn't really think I'd help them for free, did you? We easily accomplished that job, and continued to partner up on other random ones around Caermoor. Those jobs were usually valuable jewelry, or other things like it. And contrary to what some people think, I _wasn't_ broke when I met Rapunzel- I did have some money stashed away. So I didn't necessarily need to steal the things I did, which in some ways, I'm sure, makes what I did worse. You see, I didn't steal to have the life I _needed_, I stole to have the life I_ wanted_. Only one word is different, but I'm sure you can tell the big gap between the two. And I'm sure you can also guess that I stole because I wanted to live better than I did. Which is completely true: Once I stole the crown, I was going to sell it, and with the money, I was going to buy my own island, and live happily completely alone except for my piles and piles of money. Heavenly.

You might wonder how I could just chuck my life in Caermoor to live in seclusion. Need I remind you that as a thief I didn't really have any friends? I had _acquaintances_, but no friends. So it wasn't difficult to leave. Besides that, the one person that I had truly loved was dead, and nothing would bring her back.

So I didn't really mind leaving Caermoor one iota. In fact, I was actually looking forward to it-I was going to shake off the dust of this crummy capital and I was going to see the world. And all that was between it and the life I always dreamed of was one last job.

And that was what I was doing that fateful day- pulling that one final job. This one was the biggest of my career too, stealing the lost princess's crown, which meant that we had to break into the castle vault. Or, in reality, climbing down into it. Since you're pretty smart, I bet that you know that I was the one who came up with that idea, and the one who was actually going to steal the crown. But Thor and Morris came with me, and we climbed all over the top of the castle. It was actually pretty fun, jumping around, sliding down walls. It was awesome.

But the view from the top was even more awesome. In fact, it was completely stunning. "Wow," I said in awe. "I could get used to a view like this."

"Rider. Come on," said Thor gruffly. Apparently he was completely unfamiliar with the idea of stopping and smelling the roses. Or, in this case, stopping and taking in the spectacular view. It was always go, go, go with him. But I wasn't ready yet, and they couldn't do this job without me (par usual. Honestly, I have no idea how they managed to steal _anything _before I came along). Besides that, there wasn't a_ huge_ rush, just a small one. "Hold on," I said. I continued to look at the beautiful landscape. "Yep, I'm used to it," I decided. "Guys, I want a castle." Maybe I'd build a small castle of my own with my piles and piles of money...

"Wait until we pull this job," Thor said sarcastically. "You can buy your own castle." And with that, he grabbed me and lowered me down into the vault. The princess's crown was right there inches from my fingers, and I noticed all the guards- who seemed completely unaware of my presence. One sneezed, and I couldn't help but say something.

As before, I know what you're thinking (yes, in addition to my many other great qualities, I'm also psychic. Didn't you know? Oh, I'm not really, but _everyone _thinks the same thing here): that was stupid of you. You're completely right too. It was. But I was a bit of a smart-aleck then (okay…I'm still one), and so I made a smart remark: "Ah. Hay fever?"

"Yeah," he said.

I immediately bolted out of there (putting the crown carefully in my satchel), ignoring the guard's words of protest. The Stabbingtons both followed me and soon we were running out of town. As we did, I couldn't help but talk more about my castle. "Can't you see me in a castle of my own?" I said. "'Cause I certainly can. All the things we've seen and it's only 8 in the morning! Gentlemen, this is a very big day!"

And you know something? It ended up being a very big day, just not for the reason that I expected.

XXXXXXXXXXX

We continued to run, and run, and run- fast too- until we reached the forest. I leaned against a tree, for a short breather. And that's when I saw it: the most horrible, awful, deplorable, unacceptable, terrible, and dreadful thing I had ever seen. It was a wanted poster of me. I immediately pulled it away from the tree, and stared at it.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no," I said in horror. "This is bad, this very, very bad. This is really bad! They just can't get my nose right," I finished, holding the poster up to my face. If my face was going to be all around the kingdom, it better be right. Otherwise, how would people get the right impression of me? And what would happen to my reputation as the best looking thief in Corona if my nose looked like that? Honestly, it was almost enough to make me want to write my local representative in Parliament and demand that they hire a new poster-drawer.

"Who cares?" Thor growled.

"Well, it's easy for _you _to say," I retorted. Like they cared about their image. "You guys look amazing!" I said, gesturing toward their poster (which was also on the tree). Well, that wasn't entirely true: they looked amazing in the sense that their picture was accurate at least. Not amazing in the sense that they were attractive, because trust me, they weren't. Along with being the smartest, the most athletic, the wittiest….I was also the most handsome of the three of us (not that it took much. Between me and you, they were pretty ugly. But don't ever tell them I said that).

The sound of hoof-beats reached my ears, and I looked up at the hill behind us. A number of guards were there, and I knew they were after us. Too bad we hadn't lost them (of course, I was fully aware that if I hadn't opened my big mouth, they wouldn't have been after us in the first place), but I was confident that we could outwit them and escape. The Stabbingtons immediately started running again, and I followed, shoving the poster in my satchel. We continued to run until we found ourselves in a complete dead end. I glanced up and down, then turned to the Stabbingtons. "All right, okay. Give me a boost, and I'll pull you up," I said, even though I had absolutely no intention of doing it. It wasn't really possible for me to, anyway, considering one of them weighed like 200 pounds. I was strong, but not that strong. But hopefully they wouldn't figure it out.

They exchanged glances. "Give us the satchel first," Thor said.

Ha, they knew me too well. Nevertheless, I pretended to be offended. "What? I just can't believe that after all we've been through, you don't trust me?" They just stared at me, unflinchingly. Meaning they didn't believe me one bit. Which was actually one of the most intelligent things they had ever done. "Ouch," I said. I gave them a look, and then dropped the satchel into Thor's hands.

They helped me up, and I climbed up over them, not able to resist putting one of my feet in their faces. And, as I did, I swiped the satchel away from them. Did I mention that I was smarter than both of them put together? Seriously, I had just used the oldest trick in the book. You would think that they would have known better by now after working with me for around a year.

But they never did learn, evidenced by what Thor said next. "Now help us up, pretty boy," he demanded.

"Sorry," I told him with a grin. "My hands are full!" I dangled the satchel in front of their faces, before running off.

"What? Rider!" I heard Thor holler after me. I figured that they might get caught then, but honestly? I didn't care all that much. And I couldn't help but think sarcastically as I kept running that I hoped that they would enjoy prison and I would greatly miss the sound of their laughter (yes, that was a joke. Neither of them laughed at all, in addition to not being able to take any jokes. Granted, that could be because most of the jokes I made sometimes were at their expense).

You know what's funny? Looking back, I can't believe I was thinking stupid things like that, when the guards were practically breathing down my neck. I mean, I was fast, but they were faster-they did have horses after all. And arrows too, which they didn't hesitate to shoot at me. It was a good thing I was so clever, and managed to not become their new target practice. Otherwise, this would be a very short story, and a boring one too.

But, as it turned out, I had to keep running and running, and bounding over numerous obstacles on my way. I can admit now, albeit grudgingly, that those guard who were after me, _were_ rather clever. At least they were able to follow me, no matter how many times I switched directions. :

Of course, as you've probably figured out, I did outwit them: I found a vine to swing on and I managed to knock the captain off his horse. And you know what's vastly amusing to me now? The horse managed to outwit me, in a sense. It's like it knew who I was or something, because we had only gone a few yards before it screeched to a halt and turned its head toward me. And I could swear that it glared at me. I glared back and kicked my heels into its side. "Come on, fleabag. Forward," I ordered.

Stupidly, I held the satchel in front of its face, which it immediately seemed to know contained the stolen crown, and started to try to grab it with its teeth. Yes, if you must know, I _did _think the horse was insane. Because what kind of horse is like that anyway? Most horses I knew were big and dumb. Too bad this one wasn't like that. It matched my determination to get away with its determination to get the satchel. It kept biting, and biting at the satchel. "No, no," I said over and over because most horses when you say no to something, they actually do what you say. "Stop it. Stop it. Give it to me," I told the horse. We kept fighting over the satchel until it flew out of my grip….and landed on the branch of a tree, that just_ happened_ to overlook a cliff. Stupendous. Isn't it funny how everything can be against you some days? Seriously, that's what this day was like-I just couldn't get a break from _anything_. And I must confess that it did make me sort of peeved. Couldn't a guy steal a crown and leave the country without too much hassle?

Apparently not, because I still had to battle that fool horse for the satchel. I had to endure being repeatedly tripped by that stupid, stupid horse and I almost fell off the tree when he tossed me off of his head (I guess he wasn't a big fan of having all my weight there). And, if that wasn't enough, I had to scramble on the bottom of the tree, trying to reach the satchel before the horse did, or it slipped off the branch into the ground below. I successfully retrieved the satchel, of course, but I had only done so (with a smug haha at the horse) before the tree broke under our weight (hey, it wasn't my fault…..it was the horse!). We started to fall headlong toward the ground beneath us, and I couldn't help but hold onto the tree for dear life. Naturally, being the courageous man that I was, I didn't scream one iota….Okay, fine. You win. Again. You're like that horse, you know that? Way too smart for your own good. I did scream, but not too much.

But you try what I had gone through and see if you don't scream any. And that was even before the tree broke on the rocks below, and I went flying in one direction and the horse in the other. However, since I was so smart, I figured that the horse would immediately start looking for me, and so I hid behind a rock, until I watched it walk past me. But the horse began to sniff the ground, and it would be only seconds before it found me again. Since I didn't want a repeat of all that marvelous horseplay on the cliff, I hid again in a cave before I was certain that the horse wouldn't find me.

When I was sure, I walked out of the other side of the cave, and that was when I saw it: A tall, majestic tower in the clearing, with vines climbing on all sides of it. Behind it was a glistening waterfall. (As you might have picked up, this was Rapunzel's tower. Of course it was. How many other towers do you know of in the woods of Corona?)

But yes, it was beautiful and I wondered briefly if the view from a tower was as spectacular as the view from a castle. Suddenly I heard the horse again, and I knew that my best chance of losing the horse for good was to climb up the tower, take refuge there, and hope nobody lived there. I didn't think it was likely though. Why would somebody live in a tower in the middle of the woods?

So I found two halves of an arrow and used them to climb up the tower as fast as I could. And, luckily, for me when I reached the top there was an open window. I quickly closed it so there would be no possibility of anyone seeing me. Then I realized that I was finally safe- no guards, no Stabbingtons, and no psycho horses. I opened my satchel and sighed contentedly when I saw that it was still there, unbroken and unharmed. "Ah. Alone at last," I said in complete relief. However, my relief didn't last long at all. Soon I felt a hard whack on the back of my head and I slumped to the floor.  
>And everything was black.<p>

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><p>Another note: Flip is actually a drink that people used to drink in Britain and there really is a pub called the Red Dragon. Where it is, i don't know, but it is the name of a real one. Awesome right?<p>

Oh, and for those who don't know, Caermoor is the name I gave to the capital of Corona.

Did you pick out the movie quote in here? Hope so!

-FL 6


	2. Flynn vs the Frying Pan

AN: thank you for the reviews for the last chapter! I can't tell you how pleased I am that Flynn/Eugene is sounding like himself. YAY.

Anyway, I really liked writing this chapter, partly because this scene in the movie is so incredibly funny and partly because it is one of my favorite scenes in the whole movie. I hope you enjoy it! And don't hesitate to leave me a review, even it it's one two words long. haha

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 2-Flynn vs the Frying Pan<br>**_

George Bailey**: **This is a very interesting situation!

-_It's a Wonderful Life_

"Rapunzel had splendid long hair, as fine as spun gold….."

-_Rapunzel_, Brothers Grimm

Since you've been rather….kind to listen to this story, I'll spare you the details of what happened in my head while I was unconscious. That is, unless you really _want _to hear about the dream I had as king of the world.

Yeah. I didn't think so.

So I'll pick up the story when I was conscious again. I must have woken up with the most killer headache I had ever had in my entire life. My head throbbed, and I would have rubbed it, if I could have actually moved my arms. However, that was kind of impossible, considering I was tied up with something. I glanced around the room, and my eyes landed on something yellow that curled around the room. Much to my surprise, it wasn't a rope. In fact, it looked an awful lot like….hair. What? "Is this…hair?" I said incredulously. I was tied up with hair? Seriously? Well, I was sure. _Now_ I had seen everything.

"Struggling….struggling is _pointless_," said a soft female voice. "I know why you're here, and I'm not afraid of you.

She knew why I was here? Well, that was hard to believe. If she had, she clearly wouldn't have tied me up. As for the whole fear thing….why would she be afraid of me? I was a thief, not an axe murderer. "What?" I said.

Suddenly a girl in a purple dress stepped out of the shadows- a quite pretty girl who looked a few years younger than me. Thick blond hair, thin, and the biggest green eyes I think I had ever seen. Did I say she was pretty? She was more than pretty, actually. She was almost beautiful. "Who are you and how did you find me?" she asked.

How did I _find_ her? I wasn't aware I was even _looking_ for her. "Ah ha," I managed to say. Oh, brilliant, I thought to myself. Could I sound like a bigger idiot? Probably not, but you'd sound the same if you'd been hit in the head twice. I could already feel a bruise forming on the back of my head.

"Who are you, and how did you find me?" she demanded again, this time raising a frying pan over her head.

Ah, well that explains the mystery of my pounding headache- she must have hit me with it. I had been in many difficult situations, but this was definitely the stickiest. Or maybe that should be the hairiest?

Well. In a circumstance like this, there was only one thing to do: turn on the charm.

I cleared my throat. "I know not who you are, nor how I came to find you…" I began. Her facial expression changed immediately. Good. "But may I just say….hi?" I finished with a smirk. She blinked in confusion. "How ya doing? The name's Flynn Rider. How's your day going?"

She blinked again, then she shook her head slightly. "Who else knows my location, _Flynn Rider?" _she said firmly, threatening me with the frying pan again.

Okay, I was officially sick of this whole frying pan threatening bit. "All right, listen, Blondie…"

"Rapunzel," she interrupted.

Was that supposed to be her name? Or a sneeze? Either way, I couldn't resist a snicker. "Gesundheit." She immediately glared at me. Oh. I guess that _had_ been her name. Still, you can't blame me for not knowing the difference. I mean, what kind of parent names their child_ Rapunzel_ anyway? Only a mother obsessed with flowers, that's for sure. In any event, it's about time Blondie here understood the situation. How could she do anything else but free me when she knew what a trial I had been through? "Here's the deal. I was in a situation, gallivanting through the forest. I came across your tower, and-….oh, no!" Suddenly, I felt an overwhelming sense of panic. I just realized I had no idea where my satchel was-and along with it the ability to finally get my island. "Where is my satchel?"

She smiled, quite smugly as a matter a fact. And I instantly knew she had found it. Well, this really wasn't my day, was it? "I've hidden it," she said. "Somewhere you'll _never_ find it."

I glanced around the room, one eye searching every nook and cranny, one eye fixed on her eyes- waiting for anything in her face that might tell me where she had hidden it. Finally, her eyes twitched in a certain direction, toward a small pot.

I gestured toward it. "It's in that pot, isn't it?"

And you know what I got for all my efforts? All I got was another hit on the head with the blasted frying pan.

Oh yeah. I was having a _stupendous_ day.

XXXXXXXXX

I woke up again, only to find a slimy, slobbering tongue in my ear. "AHHH!" I screeched. No, my reaction was not extreme. I dare you to wake up to a frog's tongue in your ear and see how much you like it. I rubbed my ear against my shoulder, trying to erase that disgusting feeling. "Will you stop that?"

She- I guess her name was Rapunzel, but there was no way I could call her that: with that much blond hair, she needed to be called Blondie. In any event, she who had rudely hit me in the head and tied me up- cleared her throat. "Ahem." I shot her a very annoyed look, which she immediately returned. "_Now_ I've hidden it where you'll never find it." She began circling me like a hawk. "So, what do want with my hair? Cut it?"

Her _hair_? All this drama over _hair_? Was she serious? "_What_?

"Sell it?" she continued.

Okay, hair was one thing I didn't actually want to sell. Or steal. Right now, there was only thing I wanted: And that was to get out of her hair (in more ways than one), out of this tower, and out of Corona. Then, once I was out, I would sell the crown, buy my island, and live happily, surrounded by lots and lots of money. Total perfection, in my opinion. "What? No, listen, the only thing I want with your hair is to get out of it. Literally!" _And now would be ideal. _

"Wait," she said, surprised. "You _don't_ want my hair?"

I think this girl's been in her tower a bit too long. Why else would she think that people would want her hair? Granted, it was long (very long!), and thick, and…well, actually kind of pretty. But be serious. Who needs that much hair, unless they're bald or something? "Why on earth would I want your hair?" I told her. "Look, I was being chased, I saw a tower, I climbed it. End of story."

"You're telling the truth?" she asked cautiously.

You know something? For once, I actually was. And wasn't there some saying about "the truth will set you free?" Hopefully, my telling the truth would set me free. Literally. "_Yes_."

She extended the frying pan out toward me, while her frog traveled down her arm, down the frying pan, and ended up only inches from my face. My eyes widened and I stared at the frog, while it stared at me. Finally, it made some sort of signal to Blondie and she started to walk away. Hello? Were we done with the interrogation now? I'm sorry, did I win?

I watched as she took the frog in her hands, and started talking to it. Seriously? Was she really talking to a _frog_? I take it back- this girl may be pretty, but she was beyond strange. She was…crazy. Who else would talk to _frogs, _besides people who were clearly insane? And who else would tie people up with their hair? I immediately tried to release myself from her hair (how much did she have anyway? From what I could tell it encircled her whole tower. Now _that_ was even stranger than the frog thing. Hadn't she ever heard of a haircut?)- I needed to get out of here and I needed to do it now. While I tried to free myself, I managed to make out certain snippets out of what she was saying: _Yes….need someone to take me….telling the truth…doesn't have fangs …yes….other choice….have. _ She seemed to come to some kind of decision, put her frog on her shoulder, and then walked back to me, picking up her hair on the way.

"All right, _Flynn Rider_," she said confidently. "I'm prepared to offer you a deal."

"Deal?" I said, completely incredulous. Was she serious? So, tying me up in her hair wasn't enough, now I had to agree to some sort of deal? What did I ever do to her, besides take refuge in her tower? Seriously! It's not like I knew anybody actually lived here.

Blondie continued to walk, picked up her hair, and then pulled on my chair to face a painting. My chair tipped over and my face fell flat on the floor. And yes, if you wanted to know, it did hurt. My head pounded again. "Do you know what these are?" she asked.

Between the floor and my face, I managed to look up and briefly glanced at the painting. It was a bunch of lights in the sky. Suddenly, I remembered the lanterns that the King and Queen sent up each summer for their lost daughter, hoping she would return. "You mean the lantern thing they do for the princess?" I managed to say between my face and the floor.

Her eyes lit up….and I felt the oddest thrill. Really, her eyes shone like the lanterns she was obviously obsessed with when she smiled like that. "Lanterns!" she repeated softly, almost to herself. "I _knew_ they weren't stars." She shook her head slightly, then continued. "Well, tomorrow evening they will light the night sky with these _lanterns_." She glanced back at me, almost to make sure I was listening. Well, why wouldn't I be? I mean, I was just _dying_ to know what ridiculous deal she was going to make me agree to. "You will act as my guide and take me to see the lanterns and return me home safely. Then and o_nly _then will I return you satchel to you. That is my deal."

Yep. It was official. Blondie here was _definitely_ insane. I mean, she had to be to think that I would ever, ever go back to Caermoor again after I had stolen the crown. If I so much as put one foot there, I would be immediately arrested, and thrown in jail- where at best, I would live for the rest of my life, and at worst, I would be executed. And there would go my island. Not a chance I would agree to her deal. "Yeah. No can do," I said curtly. "Unfortunately, the kingdom and I aren't 'simpatico' at the moment." Simpatico was putting it mildly (at odds was probably a better word, and even that didn't go far enough), but I didn't feel an urge to tell this girl my life's story. "So I won't be taking you anywhere."

Her shoulders slumped, but she glanced at her frog again. Determination entered her eyes once again, and she pulled my chair upright. "Something brought you here, _Flynn Rider_," she said. "Call it what you will. Fate, Destiny-…."

Fate, my foot. Only one thing had brought me here- and it had four hoofs and a tail. I raised an eyebrow. "A horse?" I retorted dryly.

Completely ignoring my remark, she continued. "….So I have made the decision to trust you."

Well, that was rather stupid of her. I was, as you must know, many wonderful things, but trustworthy was not actually one of them. I mean, look what I had just done with the Stabbingtons. "A horrible decision, really."

She held up my chair with her hand and her hair, and brought her face close to mine. "But trust me when I tell you this," she stated sternly. "You can tear this tower apart _brick_ by _brick_, but without my help you will_ never_ find your precious satchel."

Well, I was pretty sure I was clever enough to find it without having to tear it apart "brick by brick", as she put it, but what else could I do? I couldn't go look for it now, considering I was slightly tied up at the moment. I cleared my throat again, hoping that I had heard her wrong. I didn't think I had though. Still, I couldn't resist asking. "Let me get this straight. I take you to see the lanterns…bring you back home…and you'll give me back my satchel?"

"I promise," she said.

Yeah. Do I look like a sucker to you? Please. I had practically written the book on how to con people. How did I know that if I _did_ take her on this fool excursion, she would give me back my satchel? I didn't. So I raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"And when I promise something I never, ever break that promise," she said firmly.

I continued to look at her skeptically.

"Ever," she insisted.

Maybe she did mean it- she _was_ the oddest girl I had ever met. Maybe she did keep her promises. And maybe pigs flew too. Regardless, even if she was in earnest, I wasn't going to agree. Not without trying my ace first. "All right, I didn't want to have to do this," I began. "But you leave me no choice. Here comes the smolder." I dipped my head to my chest, and then put on my smolder face-which generally caused women to throw themselves into my arms. Not that I could actually catch her, in case she did decide to do so, since my arms were still pinned to my sides. But at least maybe she would give up the whole lantern idea.

But she didn't even look like she wanted to and she didn't look like she hadn't forgotten the lanterns either-she kept staring me down. Strange. Hadn't I done the face right? "This is kind of an off day for me," I said in surprise. "This doesn't normally happen."

Well, I had no other brilliant ideas. There was only one option open to me. And yes, I wasn't happy about it. But what else could I do? I was in sort of a bind. "All right, fine," I agreed reluctantly. "I'll take you to see the lanterns." Hopefully she wouldn't be too much of a pain and hopefully it would go fast. And hopefully afterward I would be able to resume my previous plan.

In her apparent joy, she let go of both her hair and my chair. And my face fell flat on the floor. Again. "Really?" she squealed.

My face smarted. "You broke my smolder!" I told her in a weak voice.

But she didn't even notice. She was too excited about those fool lanterns. I sighed heavily. This was_ so _not my idea of a fun day. But what else could I do if I wanted to get my satchel back (and my island)? I had not choice but take this crazy girl to see her crazy lanterns.

And hopefully I wouldn't become too crazy myself in the process.


	3. Rapunzel vs the Outside World

AN: So, in honor of both Zach Levi and _Chuck_, I'm probably going to make all the chapter titles like this...blank vs. the blank. So, hence Rapunzel vs. the Outside World. I think it will give something...I don't know...special to this story. Or maybe not. But it amuses me, and part of my purpose in writing is to amuse myself. So there you go.

Did any of you watch the latest _Chuck_? Please don't tell me I'm alone in my obsession. Seriously, it was beyond awesome, right down to the title-Chuck vs. the Wedding Planner. Brilliant.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and leave me a review to tell me what you think. Originally, I wrote this scene in Beyond Appearances and I put in this story too, because I rather liked it.

-FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 3-Rapunzel vs . the Outside World<strong>_

Lord Caversham: Do you always understand everything you say?  
>Lord Arthur Goring: Yes... if I listen attentively.<p>

-Oscar Wilde, _An Ideal Husband_

_**A**_s you might have guessed, I wasn't too thrilled about this impromptu journey back to Caermoor to see the "floating lights." I felt pretty much shanghaied into it, but I resolved to at least be civil to this girl. Besides, she looked so excited-it was like lanterns were inserted in her face. I wasn't that cruel to pop her bubble. I watched her as her eyes darted around the room, like she was looking for something. What that could be, I had no idea. What could she possibly need on this trip? She did know that anything she took with her she would have to carry the entire time? I sure wasn't going to do it for her. I sighed heavily. If we were going to do this, we had better leave about…now. "So," I asked her with false brightness. "Are you ready?"

She beamed a smile at me…and I felt another odd thrill. _Uh-oh. Better stop feeling those thrills or there will be trouble. Don't forget your dream! _ "Of course!" she said happily. "Pascal, Hesty, and I are all ready for this grand adventure!"

For the second time in as many minutes, I felt completely stumped by this girl. Can I tell you that this is a rare occurrence for me? Generally, I could tell what girls were thinking about, because it was usually about me (and how insanely handsome I was). But this girl, well, it was_ impossible _to read her mind. Or, in fact, to figure out what she was talking about. "Now I'm guessing that 'Pascal' is the frog," (she named her _frog_? Please don't tell me that I'm the only one who finds that strange)" I said. "And you are yourself, but who on earth is 'Hesty'?"

She laughed-a pure, lilting, and sweet sound_._ And I almost wanted to say something to make her do it again._ Now, stop that._ "Hesty is my frying pan, of course!" she told me.

Well. This girl was…agreeable enough (besides the whole tying me up thing), and had a nice smile, eyes, and laugh. But that didn't make her any less strange. Naming her frying pan? Hello? Who _does _that? Was there no end to her apparent insanity? If I continued to hang out with her, soon I would start referring to my satchel as Satch, or Satty. Or maybe even Percy (you know, like Pursey). And what would happen to my reputation then? "You _named _your frying pan?"

She laughed again. "Why not?" she said. "Hesty's certainly served me well today." She gave me a very pointed look, which I guess translated to…you were hit three times in the head with her. Why shouldn't I name something that was so useful?

_You mean besides the fact that it's freakin' frying pan, for heaven's sake?_ I found myself becoming sort of peeved, and usually that isn't a good mood for me (you don't want to see me angry either, because it usually isn't pretty). And so I did something I'm not….too proud of: I began to mercilessly tease her, borderline insulting her- i.e. show her how completely lunatic her naming her pan was. "O…kay," I said with a smirk. "If you, Pascal, and _Hesty_ are ready, now would be a good time to get going. That is, if you can drag yourself away from all your other precious named objects." I'm happy to tell you that this kind of teasing wasn't typically of me. Contrary to what you might think, I'm not actually a mean person. Wait. Is that a smirk on your face? Why are you smirking at me? It's not my fault that some people mistake my wit for sarcasm or insults! Hey, my policy is if you have something witty to say….you'd better say it. How else will people know who incredibly clever you are if you don't tell them? Constantly? Actions don't always speak louder than words, you know.

Right, you're squirming again. Ahem. Sorry for that…I guess I was sort of sidetracked by my own brilliance. We're back to Rapunzel (or, as I called her then, Blondie) now. She flushed then, which meant that she understood what I said. And resented it. "There's no need to flame me," she retorted.

Flame me…that's actually pretty clever of her. She apparently was very smart, even if she was sort of crazy. Nevertheless, I continued to smirk. "Oh, no, Blondie, I wouldn't want to take you away from Bookie, Ovey, and Mopy here."

Her cheeks turned red. "That's quite-" Obviously, she wasn't somebody you wanted to see angry either.

So I could tell that I was really pushing it, but I was riding a wave of wit, and once I started that….well, you couldn't stop me. Not unless you thrust something sharp in my face. "Not to mention Buckie, Tabley, and Chairy. Seriously!" I began to laugh at her. "They must be great friends. I mean, how you could you even _think_ of leaving your…"

She angrily walked over to me, and shoved her frying pan in my face with a glare. "I will use this if you don't stop that right now."

I finally stopped laughing at her. After all, I didn't want another whack in the head. "Oh, okay, Blondie. No need to get yourself all _fried._" Wasn't that witty of me? Get it? Fried? Fry pan? I know. I _am_ really clever.

She sighed, and then her voice was completely calm. It was actually pretty amazing how she could go from mad to quiet in five seconds. "Rapunzel," she corrected softly. "And I'm ready to go if you are."

I let out a slight chuckle. "Oh, of course, _I_ am," I informed her. "Flynn Rider's prepared for anything. I was just waiting to make sure _you _were."

Her eyes did something then….was that an eye-roll? Did she really roll her eyes at me? Well. This girl has spunk, that's for sure. No girl usually rolled her eyes at me because they too busy batting them instead. "Yes, I am," she said. "And _Rapunzel_ is prepared for anything too. That is, as long as she can have some of her_ precious_ objects with her. Otherwise, who knows how lonely she could become? I mean, wouldn't _you_ be if you lived in a tower all by yourself for most of your life?"

She lived in the tower for most of her life? All by herself? No wonder she was lonely enough to talk to random objects. It was odd, but in a weird way it did make sense. And it explained a lot of her eccentricities. I felt a wave of something very akin to remorse. But I didn't let it show. "Well, all right, then. Let's get you to see those lanterns."

"All right," she agreed.

XXXXXXXXXX

Finally-after all that good talk-we left the tower. I went down first, using the arrows as a way to get down. However, Blondie didn't follow me, and I was almost halfway down before I started wondering about it. Didn't she want to go see the lanterns?

"You coming, Blondie?" I hollered up to her. I glanced up, curious to see what the hold up was. And one second she was staring down her tower at the ground, and the next she was flying past me by her hair. Well. I'll say one thing for her hair- she obviously knew how to use it for her benefit. I immediately clung close to the tower, so I wouldn't get hit by her on her way down. With a squeal she reached the ground and quickly ran off. Wonderful. Now I would have to go chase after her. Just what I wanted to do.

After I reached the bottom of the tower, I went looking for her. It didn't take too much time either, because she was shrieking in excitement. It was actually kind of amusing, but then her face totally crumpled and her eyes widened in some kind of anxiety. And then she started talking to herself. Over and over again. While she did, she swung from one emotion to another much like she had swung by her hair (it was enough to make me think she was completely bipolar, and it took all my self-control to sit patiently while she sorted out her life):

"Mother would be so furious if she found out."

"That's okay, what she doesn't know won't kill her."

"Oh my gosh, this _would _kill her."

"This is so fun!"

"I am a horrible daughter. I'm going back."

"I am _never _going back!"

"I am a _despicable_ human being."

"Whoo-hoo! Best-Day-Ever!"

However, even thought it was trying, I did figure out a few things by listening to her. One, she had a mother. Two, that mother was very protective of her, and didn't want her to leave her tower (I mused to myself that maybe her mother was as crazy as she was. You know something? It turns out that I was almost right- except the fact that her mother was _completely _crazy and not just a little). Three, that aforementioned mother didn't know about her impromptu journey to see the lanterns and wouldn't like it if she did. Really, it was dramatic enough to be out of a novel. It was obviously the biggest drama of Blondie's life, and she couldn't decide between doing what _she_ wanted to do and what her _mother_ wanted her to do.

Finally, she sat down in the grass, and she started sobbing like her heart was breaking. As she did, I felt mine wrench inside me. And even though I swore I was going to keep my distance from her, I walked over and cleared my throat. "You know," I said kindly. "I couldn't help but notice that you're a little at_ war _with yourself here." That was a slight understatement, but hey. I was trying to actually be nice to her for a change. I still felt slightly guilty about teasing her so much back in the tower.

She immediately stopped crying and glanced up at me. "What?"

"Now I'm only picking up bits and pieces," I told her. "Over-protective mother, forbidden road trip. This is serious stuff." She stared at me in surprise- it seemed she was as surprised by my being compassionate as I was myself. Actually, I didn't even know why I was doing this. If I let her keep crying, then maybe she'd just keep up on this whole lantern idea. Yet I couldn't help but explain to her the ins and outs of this thing called adolescence. Clearly her mother hadn't decided to let her in on that minor detail of life. "But let me ease your conscience," I continued. "This is part of growing up. A little rebellion, a little adventure. That's_ good_, healthy even." Her frog jumped up on my shoulder, and I discreetly flicked him off. I didn't want it even _near _me.

She wiped her hand across her eyes. "You think?"

I leaned one foot against the rock behind her and resumed "I_ know_!" I said. "You're way over-thinking this, trust me. Does your mother deserve this? No. Would this break her heart and crush her soul? _Of course_. But you just got to do it." If I'm going to continue being honest in this story (which I _have _been, and you can believe that or not. It's up to you), I must tell you that I didn't actually have personal experience in this area because…..well, just because. So I couldn't say that everything I said was absolutely true. But it sure sounded good, doesn't it?

Her eyes grew grave and tears started to well up again. "Break her….heart?" she repeated slowly.

I picked a berry from the bush and examined it as if it had the answer to life, the universe, and everything. "In half."

"Crush her….._soul_?" she said tearfully.

Apparently she wasn't too keen on hurting her mother, even if she was practically an adult. Hmmm. Too bad I didn't know how that felt because... anyway. But if we were talking about fathers, well. Let's just say I couldn't relate to Blondie here's dilemma. I would easily take his heart and stomp on it. Or maybe break it with a battle axe. I squashed the berry between my fingers. "Like a grape."

I gently helped her up. "She _would_ be heartbroken, you're right," she told me with a crestfallen face.

I considered her words for a moment. "Hmmm. I am, aren't I? Oh bother." For once, I was actually right about something in regard to families. Shocking. This was a day for new discoveries for me, wasn't it? Well, if Blondie didn't want to hurt her mother, then she would go back to the tower. And I would get my satchel back, and flee the country. All I had to do was pretend to be the martyr and act like I didn't want to break the "deal." Easiest con I had ever done. "All right. I can't believe I'm saying this," I said, as if I was resigned. "But I'm letting you out of the deal."

She stared at me, incredulous. "_What_?"

I walked over to the rock where she had placed her pan and her frog. "That's right," I continued. "But don't thank me" (like there was any chance of that!). "Let's just turn around and get you home." I shoved both items into her arms, and began to push her back toward the tower. "Here's your pan, here's your frog. I get back my satchel, and you get back a mother-daughter relationship based on mutual trust and voila! We part ways as unlikely friends." The term "friends" was really pushing it, but hey. I don't think business partners would have the same effect. And I didn't think telling her that her mother obviously didn't seem to trust her would have the same effect either. Then she'd _want_ to leave, and then where would I be? Well, in a few days, I could tell you where I'd be: in jail, or out of Corona. Hopefully, it would be the latter. I wasn't too fond of jails. Rather smelly, you know, and damp.

We had only walked around two steps before she slammed her feet into the ground and pushed me away. "No!" she insisted loudly. "I am seeing those lanterns."

_And so close…_.There must be something about those lanterns to make her want to go so badly. Did she know something about them that I didn't? That couldn't be possible; I had seen them almost every year since I was….probably like 4. And it was always the same thing every time. Don't get me wrong, they were pretty and all. But seriously. They weren't worth all this hassle. "Oh, come on!" I said, annoyed. "What's it going to take for me to get my satchel back?"

She shoved her frying pan in my face. "I will use this."

Suddenly, rustling came from the bush behind us and she immediately threw herself on my back. "Is it ruffians?" she said in a panic, and thrust her frying pan out in front of her. "Thugs? Have they come for me?"

Good Lord. This girl's all over the map! She seemed perfectly sane one minute (apart from the frog….and the pan…and the mother…and the hair. But other than that, she was normal…ish), and the next she seemed to suffer from complete paranoia. Why else would she think everybody was out to get her? It was likely some kind of animal or something, and she was totally over-reacting. Naturally, I was right-a bunny bounded out of the bushes. Hmmm. Now let me think. The last person who had died from a bunny attack was…..well, never. Silly girl. I couldn't help a sarcastic remark. "Stay calm," I told her dryly. "It can probably smell fear."

She immediately slid of me, embarrassment written all over her face. Apparently, jumping on men's backs wasn't a normal activity for her. "Oh sorry!" she apologized bashfully. "I guess I'm just a little bit….jumpy!"

Jumpy? That was a slight understatement. Try a bundle of nerves. And this was just a bunny! Imagine what she would be like if she really saw a real ruffian…or thug. Hmmm..."Probably be best if we avoided ruffians and thugs though."

"Yeah, that would probably be best," she said with a slight laugh. "Who knows what I'd do if I actually saw one?"

Suddenly I had a completely brilliant idea: If she actually saw a thug, maybe she'd be so scared she'd want to go back to her tower- and stay there. And I could leave the county like I'd planned. I knew just the place that would completely terrify her too- The Snuggly Duckling. Actually, don't let the name fool you-it's the complete opposite (which always amused me greatly. Talk about irony!) "Are you hungry?" I said brightly. "I know a great place for lunch."

She smiled. You know something? I was becoming _way_ too fond of that smile. "Where?"

"Oh, don't worry," I assured her. "You'll know it when you smell it." I grabbed her frying pan and dragged her along behind me with a cocky smirk.

Now _this_ was a fool-proof plan. Don't you think? I sure did.

Too bad I was wrong about that.


	4. Rapunzel vs the Thugs

AN: this isn't as funny as I wanted, but I hope you like it anyway. I'm just going to forewarn you now that I'm in the last two weeks of my semester, so the next chapter might not be up until the end of the week.

As always, thank you for reading and reviewing!

FL 6

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><p><strong>Chapter 4- Rapunzel vs. the Thugs<strong>

Fear makes strangers of people who would be friends.  
>Shirley MacLane<p>

**P****l**ease don't get the wrong impression. When I say that "too bad I was wrong about that", I mean in my _Flynn_ mind, I was sad that my plan didn't work. But in my Eugene mind- the one that Rapunzel brought out- I was glad that she did what she did. No, I won't tell you what she did right now. You'll just have to listen to the story. That's how these things work, you know.

Now back to our story: I walked briskly along, and Blondie trudged along behind me, in complete silence. Well, mostly complete silence. Blondie tried to start a conversation, but my replies were pretty brief. So it went about like this:

Blondie: So, Flynn. Lovely weather we're having.

Me: Oh, yeah. Right. Actually, the weather wasn't really anything special for June, but hey. I guess any weather is nice when you haven't been outside in your entire life.

Long pause.

Blondie: So, Flynn, what kind of food does this place have?

That was a good question. I didn't really know what kind of food the Snuggly Duckling had. I was always too busy drinking flip or trying not to get beat up to notice what the menu was. Besides that, I highly doubted that the food would be good anyway. It wasn't exactly the classiest of joints, if you know what I mean. I was unsure of what to tell her, but I finally said: The kind that…you eat. Perfectly ambiguous. She glanced at me sideways, and then she grew silent once more.

Another long pause. Blondie: So, Flynn, what was that head thing called?

I guess "that head thing" was her way of saying the tiara. Me: That _head_ thing? (chuckle) You don't get out much, do you, Blondie?

Blondie: What gives you that impression?

Was she being sarcastic? Maybe I'd underestimated her cleverness. And spunkiness. Me: I have no idea. Anyway, it's called a tiara, or a crown. But don't mention it again.

Blondie: And why not?

I was really going to tell her that I had stolen it and that's why I had to hide in her tower. Right. Me (giving me a stern look): Just don't, okay? And no more questions.

After that, she seemed to give up, and silence descended- an almost heavy silence. Obviously she wasn't happy that I wasn't chatting with her. Well, I didn't mean to be….necessarily short with her, but she didn't need to know my life's story. Or my thieving ways. So, there really wasn't much for us to talk about. Unless we talked about her, that is, and I doubted that she wanted to talk about her life either. From what I could tell, it wasn't because she was cagey per se (that more aptly described _me_), because she didn't seem like that kind of person. Quite the opposite, actually. Except the whole tying me up thing, her years in the tower had made her rather…guileless, innocent, trusting, and unpretentious (or, in other words, everything that I was not). So I didn't think she wasn't open because she didn't want to share, but rather that something or someone (her mother?) told her that she _shouldn't_ share….like something bad would happen to her if she did. Besides, I doubted that she didn't trust me, because she said she did. According to her, I was somebody who could be trusted. That assumption was vastly amusing to me-because what I had ever done to deserve that? If anything, my actions showed that I was anything but.

I darted a glance at her while she plodded along behind me. Her eyes expressed deep thought, and her forehead wrinkled in….not concentration, maybe absorption. Yes, she was completely absorbed in whatever she was contemplating. I wondered briefly what she was thinking about. I wondered briefly if she was thinking about me. _Don't be an idiot. She's probably thinking about those fool lanterns. _Her eyes gazed directly at me, and I shot her a look, trying to mask the fact that I had been practically studying her. "Almost there, Blondie."

Her eyes flashed briefly with annoyance, but she soon smothered it. "Rapunzel," she corrected politely.

"Right," I said, even though I was likely going to keep calling her Blondie. It made her….more impersonal to call her that, and part of the wall that I was trying to keep up between me and her. In reality, though, I was starting to think that Rapunzel suited her just as much as Blondie did. She was certainly as pretty as a flower with those beautiful big green eyes and her long blond hair- hair that almost shone that the sun. Hmmm. Maybe her mother hadn't been that crazy to name her that after all. Silence descended between us once more, and by the sigh I heard behind me, she was starting to grow tired of it. Lucky for her, we reached the crossroad that led to the Snuggly Duckling. I looked pleasantly at her, as if I was excited to see it. "Now I know it's around here somewhere."

She smiled faintly, but her eyes were still thoughtful. I glanced around for the Snuggly Duckling and beamed again when I found it. "Ah, there it is," I said, pleased. "The Snuggly Duckling." I carefully watched her expression as she looked at it, and imagined what it would be like to see it for the first time- and what adjectives I would use to describe it. Let's see: run-down, dilapidated, building practically squashed by a tree, where you were supposed to eat. Hmm. I'd really want to eat there, wouldn't you?

Not. And, by the expression on her face, she didn't either. Apprehension clearly manifested itself on her face and she immediately stopped walking. Obviously she knew enough to know that places to eat weren't supposed to look like that. Well, she was right, but I wasn't going to be the one to tell her. "Oh, don't worry," I assured her. "It's a very quaint place, perfect for you. Don't want you getting scared and giving up on this whole endeavor, now do we?" Ha. That last sentence was funny- because that was the whole point of my bringing her here.

Her posture relaxed slightly. "Well," she said thoughtfully. "I do like duckling."

I doubted that, even if the Snuggly Duckling had duckling, it would be very good. "Yay!" I said with mock excitement.

XXXXXXXXX

As we grew closer to the Snuggly Duckling, Blondie's nose wrinkled as she smelled the oh-so-pleasant stench of the restaurant (slight exaggeration, I know- because it reeked of sweat and it wasn't a restaurant in any stretch of the imagination). Her steps faltered again, and I knew that desperate times called for desperate measures. So I gently placed one hand on her waist to guide her into the Snuggly Duckling, and pushed the door open with the other. "Garcon!" I called. "Your finest table, please!"

Actually, there was no such thing as a "finest" table, because all of them were on the verge of falling apart. And at every single table were large, intimating, and angry men, who were also very fond of any kind of weapons. They glared at both of us, as if we had interrupted something very important- maybe their daily scowling contest or fight over who was the toughest. Blondie's breath immediately inhaled as she saw the restaurant, and her eyes started to widen in something very, very akin to fear. Excellent. Well, finally I was right about something about her- this place _terrified_ her, just like I thought it would. Actually, this place sometimes would terrify me too, because the thugs, ruffians, and Vikings were pretty intimidating. And they weren't too fond of me so I wasn't planning on being here long (because honestly I didn't like this place any more than I thought Blondie would. The Red Dragon was way better and most of the people there weren't as fond of axes- or knives). I didn't want Blondie to get hurt either, which you can choose to believe or not. But having her harmed wasn't part of my plan. My intent was let her see the men, get her good and scared, and then leave immediately and take her back to her tower.

By the look on her face, she was good and scared already. Her eyes were twice their normal size (which meant that they were pretty much ginormous), her posture defensive, and she immediately thrust her frying pan (what had she called it? Hefty?) out in front of her, as if it could protect her from them. I have to tell you that it wasn't likely that her frying pan would help her at all in this instance. For a second, she seemed like she believed it would, but then I noticed her feet (her very cute feet, though they were bare. Odd. Hadn't she ever heard of shoes?) twitch and it was obvious she was about to bolt. Smart girl.

Too bad I was smarter in this case. Before she could run out the door, I put my hands on her shoulders and practically shoved her further into the restaurant. "You smell that? Take a deep breath through the nose." I told her. "Really let that seep in. What are you getting? Because to me, that's part man-smell, and the other part is really bad man-smell. I don't know why, but overall it just smells like the color brown. Your thoughts?" She didn't say anything, but I could feel the tension in her shoulders. Something jerked on her head, and she turned around, swinging her frying pan at whoever it was. She didn't pay much attention to what she was doing, and missed hitting me by a hair. One of the thugs had taken some of her hair in his hands, and stared at it like he had never seen anything like it before (which was actually fairly likely. I sure hadn't)."That's a lot of hair," he muttered.

I couldn't resist a sarcastic reply. "She's growing it out", I told the man, wryly. Blondie, apparently not fond of the thug touching her hair, immediately scooped up the rest of her hair in her hands, and held her frying pan out even further in front of her. She stumbled around in a fearful stupor, bumping into random thugs along her way. Most of them weren't too happy about it, and one of them seemed to growl at her.

Now, the most polite thing to do would be to walk over to her, and get her out of there. That would have been the gentlemanly thing to do. However, and I'm sorry to say, I wasn't much of a gentlemen then, and I didn't even go close to her. Instead, I looked at the thug that had touched her hair. Interesting. He seemed to have red in his mustache, and I bellowed out a description to her."Is that blood in your mustache?" I said to him. "Goldie, look at all the blood in his mustache! Good sir, that's a lot of blood!"

I glanced over at her again, curious to see what her reaction would be. Her face drained of all color, and she looked almost sick with fear. For a moment, I felt a twinge of guilt for scaring her so badly, but I immediately suppressed it. Giving in to some sort of sentimentality would get me nowhere. In fact, it would probably get me a place that I didn't want to go. So, instead of saying something reassuring, I commented on her appearance instead. "Hey, you don't look so good, Blondie." Only a minor understatement, but I figured that telling her that she was portraying an excellent impression of a marble statue wouldn't be very kind, and likely wouldn't make her very happy. Though it would please_ me_ immensely since there was nothing I liked better than a triumphant laugh at my own wit. I strolled over to her, and started to walk her over to the door. "Maybe we should get you home, call it a day."

She followed along with me, but I couldn't help but notice the slightest of hesitations in her steps. Frankly, I found that unbelievable. Didn't she want to leave? A corner of my brain yelled that she knew exactly what I was trying to do, but I instantly debunked it as impossible. How could she possibly know? It was too unbelievable, even for someone as strange as her. So I continued. "You'd probably be better off after all. This_ is_ a five start joint, and if you can't handle this, well, maybe you'd be better off in your tower." An annoying twinge of guilt hit me because I was totally lying to her. If you asked me then, I don't think I could have told you why it bothered me so much. After all, I had practically made a career out of lying- and it usually didn't matter who I was lying to or what I was lying about. But with Blondie, I don't know. Something was remarkably different about doing it to her. Maybe it was because I was so obviously deceiving her and she was so innocent. Deceiving her was like deceiving a child who didn't know anything. So it just seemed wrong. Besides, the Snuggly Duckling was not even close to being a five-star joint. In fact, it was so far from being a five-star joint, it could be called a _negative _five-star joint. And she knew it.

Nevertheless, I still pushed her toward the door. It was about time to get out of here. However, we hadn't reached the door before it was slammed in our faces by one of the thugs, a piece of paper peeking from underneath his fist."Is this you?" he said to me. I tried to read the poster from around his very large fingers, but from what I could tell it was my wanted poster. Hmmm. I wondered if they had either drawn my nose right this time, or hired a new poster drawer. I carefully moved one of his fingers so I could see my nose. I almost groaned. Ugh, this time it was even worse- in fact, my nose had been drawn three inches too long. Well, the drawer clearly wasn't stupid (even if he seemed incapable of drawing my proper likeness) which could only mean that he drew my nose that badly to completely annoy me. And from this poster, it was obvious that he enjoyed, almost relished the task. How very rude of him."Oh, now they're just being mean", I muttered under my breath.

Soon another huge and bulking thug walked over to us, with a hook instead of a hand, and immediately grabbed me by my collar. "Oh, it's him all right," he said with a gloating laugh, shoving his hook underneath my chin. "Greno, go find some guards. That reward's going to buy me a new hook."

I was about to tell him that there was absolutely nothing wrong with his old one, considering it easily accomplished it's purpose when another burly thug grabbed me. "I could use the money," he said. Not to be outdone, another one seized me away from him_. Hey, what is this? Pass the parcel or something? I am a person you know, and I resent being tossed around like a ball._ "What about me? I'm broke!" he complained. That seemed to be some kind of signal (hey, free for all! One wanted thief, come and get it!) because the rest of the thugs and ruffians decided they wanted to play "tug of war" (or maybe that should be "tug of Rider"? ) with my person. I don't think it's necessary to tell you that having at least twenty thugs pulling your arms and legs in completely opposite directions is not a pleasant experience- especially when you might end up tied up by guards by the end of it. I tried to convince them with my persuasive powers to stop, but it didn't do much good. My "Hey, we can work this out" did absolutely nothing. So did my repeated pleas of "please". Well, I guess my mother was wrong when she told me that it was the magic word because it had no effect on them whatsoever (maybe their mothers hadn't taught them any manners). Too bad. Remarkably, though, that was the only thing she had ever been wrong about so I wasn't going to be too hard on her.

While this jolly game of Rip-A-Rider was occurring, Blondie was bravely fighting them with her frying pan. For some insane reason, she actually wanted them to stop beating me up. Which I found unbelievable. Why would she want to be nice to me when I was so _not_ nice to her? Nevertheless, she was yelling at them to stop. "Hey! Leave him alone! Give me back my guide! Ruffians!" I didn't actually know what she did after that, but one second I was about to get punched in the nose (Of course I begged him not to. My nose was, as you must know, one of my best features and I didn't want anything to happen to it) by Hook Thug and the next he was hit in the head. So he stopped in shock.

I was pretty shocked too-I was shocked that my nose was still intact on my face. I had heard the crack and I had assumed that it was my nose breaking. That would have been a sad day. It wasn't my nose breaking though. Somehow Blondie had used the chandelier to get their attention. Okay, that shocked me too. Who would have guessed that she could be so bold? "Put him down!" she ordered, very loudly. It was actually amazing how loud such a small person as her could be. Hook Viking immediately glared at her. _Uh-oh. Be careful, Blondie. You don't want to get on the wrong side of their axe._

She seemed to know that she needed to say something, though. "Okay," she began. "I don't know where I am and I need _him_ to take me to see the lanterns because I've been dreaming about them my _entire_ life. Find your humanity! Haven't any of you ever had a _dream_?"

Hmmm. Nice try, Blondie, but I doubt that appealing to some sort of dream would do anything to these thugs. Too bad, because I would have really liked to get out of here without any more hassle. I wish I was wrong, because she actually spoke very charismatically, but Hook Thug immediately brought out his axe. Obviously, her speech meant nothing to him. Or, in fact, to the other thug who decided to shove me on a hook on the wall. Maybe to get me out of the way? Hook Thug started to stump toward her with his axe, and I must admit I grew worried about her. I didn't want to see her hurt- and I would probably never be able to forgive myself if she was. After all, I did have some shred (albeit a very small shred) of a conscience and it would have been my fault because I brought her here.

Hook Thug cornered her beside a barrel, and I hoped that he wasn't about to hit her with his axe. Her eyes widened, and she looked even more scared than she had previously. Hook Thug opened his mouth to speak, and I was praying it wouldn't be something like "any final words". If you gave me a guess, that probably would be what he was going to say.

However, if you had given me a thousand guesses, I doubt I would have guessed what he really did say: "I had a dream once." My mouth dropped open. Seriously? Had Hook Thug admitted he had a dream? I wouldn't even admit that _I_ had one, and I was no thug.

Blondie seemed just surprised. "Um, what?" she asked.

"I had a dream once about being a concert pianist," he told her. Then, as if, encouraged by Hook Viking, all of the other Vikings started to tell their dreams to her as well and she listened attentively and sympathetically: Tor wanted to be a florist. Gruther did interior design. Ulf liked mime. Attila made cupcakes. Bruiser knit. Killer sewed. Fang did puppet shows. Vladimir collected ceramic unicorns.

While their "sharing" went on, I "hung" out on my hook with one skeptical and scornful eyebrow raised. This was unbelievable. I hoped they wouldn't ask me what my dream was. I had no intention of joining this little smultz fest. Unfortunately, their sights finally settled on me. "Hey, what about you?" Hook Thug asked.

"I'm sorry," I said with my most sarcastic voice. "Me?"

Another finally took me off the hook. "What's your dream?" he said.

_Ha_. _Don't you wish you knew._ I immediately crossed my arms self-righteously across my chest. "No, no. Sorry boys. I don't share." No chance I would tell them. However, they immediately shoved their swords in my face. Suddenly, sharing seemed very appealing. Swords, in case you're curious, are very effective to get people to do what you want. It made me almost want to get one.

Later, that is, because now I had to tell all these thugs what my dream was. "I've got dreams like all of you, no really!" I said. "Just much less…you know, touchy feely! Most of my dreams happen somewhere warm and sunny, on an island that I own. There I would be tanned, and rested, and utterly alone…and… surrounded by enormous piles of money!" I beamed at them once I finished, hoping that would let me off. Thankfully, it did, and Blondie started talking about her lanterns again. While she did, I hoped that we could get out of her before the guards came. I guessed that they might have forgotten about it, but I sure hadn't. I was about to go get her when the door slammed open again by Greno, who bore the worst news I had heard all day.


	5. Flynn vs the Guards

AN: I'm actually fairly happy with this chapter- it has some of the sarcasm and snark that I felt the last chapter lacked. So yay! It's nice to be happy with your work. though it's funny to me how when I think I do bad on an assignment or test, I do well, and when I think I did well, I only do okay. What is up with that?

Anyway, thank you for reading, and I hope you like this chapter. Please leave a review to tell me what you think!

FL 6

Disclaimer- I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 5- Flynn vs. the Guards (Round 2)<strong>

"Necessity is the mother of all invention"

-Plato

"Of the thirty-six ways of avoiding disaster, running away is best."

-Anonymous

"I found the guards!" Greno said excitedly. As soon as he did, I immediately grabbed Blondie's hand and pulled her under a table with me. Of course, they weren't after her, but since I was her "guide" she went where I went. And in this case, that meant she went under the table. And that also meant that she heard a guard demand in a booming voice, "Where's Rider? Where is he? I know he's here somewhere!" Loud footsteps echoed on the floor of the restaurant, and soon a loud smack ricocheted from the top of the table. "Find him! Turn this place upside down if you have to!"

I peeked over the edge of the table and immediately bolted back underneath: the Stabbingtons had just entered the room, and their eyes were angry. They would grow even angrier if they saw _me_ too. I doubted they felt too many warm fuzzies toward me right now. My heart began to pound nervously, and for once, I had no idea how I was going to get out of this one. I felt Blondie's eyes on me, and I knew that there was no way that she couldn't be scared right now. I couldn't turn to her and reassure her that everything was going to be all right, because I didn't know that everything would be all right. For all I knew, I was one second away from capture by the guards. She started to breathe rapidly, and I hoped she wouldn't succumb to hysterics.

Amazingly and astonishingly enough, Hook Thug appeared. "Don't worry," he whispered. "You can escape through the tunnel." Overwhelmed with relief, Blondie and I followed him as he graciously helped us escape. He quietly showed us to the tunnel that was hidden beneath the floorboards. As we were about to depart, he sent us off with, "Go. Live your dream."

"Oh, I will," I assured him. Once I returned Blondie to her tower tomorrow, I was going to leave Corona and buy my island. Much to my surprise, Hook Viking chuckled wryly. "Ha! Your dream stinks! I was talking to her!" he said, nodding at Blondie.

My dream did not stink- and his wasn't better (a concert pianist? Please) than mine- but I decided that a retort wouldn't really suit the situation. After all, he hadn't been obliged to help us out. So began to climb down into the passageway. I heard a sweet "Thank you for everything," from Blondie and then she followed me into the darkness of the tunnel.

XXXXXXX

So, in case you wanted to know, the tunnel was dark. Really dark. In fact, it was so dark it was like looking for a black cat in a black room on a black night. Because it was so dark, I told Blondie to grab hold of the back of my shirt so she wouldn't stumble into something. The irony is that I was the one who stumbled into something, but it was a good stumble because I found a lantern.

After I lit it, and as we walked along, I felt like I should say something to her, something to acknowledge what she had done back there. After all, if she hadn't done what she did, I probably would have been captured by the guards with a very broken nose. Really, Blondie here was an unbelievable girl, and instead of being a bad thing, I decided that she was unbelievable in the best sense. And I couldn't help but tell her that in some way. "Well, I gotta say I didn't think you had that in you back there," I told her. "That was pretty…impressive." It was more than impressive, but any more and I would destroy my own reputation. And we couldn't have that.

Blondie beamed. "I know!" she said joyfully. Then, as if she realized how surprised she sounded, she repeated it more nonchalantly."I know." Probably to make me think she convinced thugs to not beat up thieves every day (what was the probability of _that_? As far as I knew, there were no hidden thugs in her tower). In any case, that was kind of cute of her. I glanced over my shoulder, and flashed a quick smile at her. For a short second I couldn't believe that I'd actually done that. I don't think I'd smiled like that at anybody for years. I was always too busy smirking instead.

She smiled back, and carefully pushed a strand a hair behind her ear. "So, Flynn," she asked. "Where are you from?"

Where are you _from? _Was that Blondie code for what's your background? Or who are your parents? Maybe she just wanted to know where I was born. Well, whatever she meant I wasn't about to tell her. My personal life was just that- personal. Meaning I didn't tell _anybody_ about it, no matter how pretty their eyes were."Whoa whoa!" I exclaimed. "Sorry, Blondie. I don't do back stories."

Even though I didn't do back stories, I sort of hoped she did. Because I couldn't help but be fantastically interested in hers. Was that completely hypocritical of me? Probably, but I was really curious about her life in the tower- and why she had ended up in the tower in the first place. It was too strange to not pique my interest."However, I am becoming_ very_ interested in yours."

Her eyes filled with surprise and she raised an eyebrow. I wasn't sure if she was surprised because I was asking her about herself or because she didn't know why I cared. Well, that made two of us. I didn't know why I cared either. But I did. Don't ask me why; she just intrigued me. Her hair especially did, but she hadn't mentioned its length which I assumed meant I shouldn't either. "Now I know I'm not supposed to mention the _hair,"_ I continued.

"Nope," she said emphatically.

She hadn't explained much about her seemingly psycho and overprotective mother either. "Or the mother."

"Uh-uh," she said.

Now that I thought about it, she hadn't explained much about her seemingly best friend frog. I wasn't sure I wanted to know the history behind _that_ one. It was just too weird. "Frankly, I'm too scared to ask about the frog."

She gestured toward her frog. "Chameleon," she corrected.

Frog, chameleon, whatever. A slimy green creature with a slobbery tongue was a slimy green creature with a slobbery tongue. They were all the same to me- and they all were disgusting. "Nuance." Mentally, I went through possible questions that I wanted to ask her, but one came up over and over: she obviously wanted to see those lanterns her entire life and she wanted to see them a _lot._ And if she wanted it that much, why hadn't her mother taken her? Why hadn't she tried to go herself? Surely her mother could spare her for a day; it's not like she would die without her or anything. Besides, Blondie-even though it was strange to admit it-was very capable of taking care of herself for somebody who spent most of her life alone. She was almost insanely independent. "Here's my question though. If you wanted to see the lanterns that badly," I asked. "Why haven't you gone before?"

She glanced at her frog, seemingly unsure as what to say. I have to say I found that surprising. Like I said, she didn't seem like the type who was cagey or secretive. But she was clearly hedging now."Ah…well…" she stammered finally. Suddenly a small rock hit her head and the ground began to shake underneath our feet. "Ah…Flynn," she said nervously. She glanced behind us and I followed her gaze. Ten guards with swords and lanterns bore down on us, yelling "Rider!" at the top of their lungs. I just couldn't shake them, could I?

Poor Blondie's eyes filled with fear again. "FLYNN!" she shrieked. Well, as much as I wanted to do something daring and brave and worthy of my name, in this kind of circumstance there was really only one thing to do. "Run!" I told her. Her feet seemed incapable of moving so I propelled her forward with my arm. "RUN!"

She finally seemed to understand that we had to run for our lives. Literally. Okay, that isn't completely fair- she didn't need to run for her life, because they had nothing on her. But they had plenty on me, not the least of which was the crown (the crown that I didn't even have anymore because it was hidden somewhere in Blondie's tower). I had the distinct feeling that she had no idea what she had gotten herself into when she demanded that I agree to her deal.

Anyway, she scooped up her hair and started to run swiftly behind me. Soon we left the tunnel, but that wasn't as good a thing as you might think. Sure, we were out of the dark but being in the light once more meant that we were on the edge of a precipice, a_ real_ precipice and not just a figurative one. Indeed, the tunnel let out on a cliff. Funny how Hook Thug didn't find it necessary to mention that. The cliff was surrounded by some kind of dam as well, that was only held up by wooden beams. Blondie and I continued to run, but as we grew closer to the edge, my protective instinct kicked in and I put a hand on her arm to keep her from running of the edge. She glanced down, but I'm not sure if she noticed the ladder that led down to the ground. I was about to point it out to her, but a loud crack echoed in my ears. Two burly and redheaded men-that looked awfully like the Stabs- burst out of a tunnel. My heart sunk like lead with dread. Which way could we go? We couldn't go back because I would be captured by the guards, and we couldn't go forward or down because I would be caught by the Stabs and who knows what they would do to me for splitting on them. Well, this was only a small pickle, wasn't it?

You might find it strange that I wasn't more surprised that they managed to escape. But to be honest with you, even if they didn't have much brain they had plenty of brawn. So it wasn't too hard to imagine that they figured out some way to break free of the guards. Blondie noticed my horrified expression. "Um…who's that?"she asked.

Yep. I was going to tell her that they were my old partners in crime. Not. I pointed a finger at them. "They don't like me," I told her. Only mildly understating things, but hey, I was only in a small time crunch.

She glanced back behind us, obviously noticing the guards who still hadn't given up on the chase. In fact, because we hadn't gone anywhere, they were almost on top of us. Blondie, suddenly becoming like the proverbial curious cat, couldn't help but ask another question: "Who's _that?"_

Not wanting to tell her that they were after me for stealing, I decided to repeat my previous response. "They don't like me either."

The annoying white horse quickly followed them. "Who's _that_?" she asked for the third time. Impatient with her game of twenty questions, I quickly turned her to face me."Look," I told her, annoyed. "Let's just assume for the moment that everyone here _doesn't _like me." I briefly thought –quite idiotically- that I hoped I didn't have to include her on that list. Though why she would like me after I had repeatedly tried to trick her was beyond me.

Her eyes darted around, and determinedly shoved her frying pan into my chest."Here!" she said. Then she threw the end of her hair around one of the beams and swung over to another rock. My eyes widened. Now _that_ was impressive. I probably would have reveled in my astonishment, had it not been for the guards. They hadn't given up on the attempt to capture me. In fact, they even seemed to reveal in it. The Captain of the Guard- at least, I assumed he was- pulled out his sword and taunted me. "I've waited a long time for this."

I suppose he thought that he was about to capture me-finally. Well, I wasn't about to give in without a fight, even if it was only with an idiotic frying pan. They started to thrust their swords at me, but I hit them hard with her frying pan and, much to my surprise, managed to knock them all out. Stunned, I stared at the pan, shocked at what it had done for me. I decided then and there that Blondie was actually completely right about frying pans. They_ were_ pretty amazing. "Oh, Mama!" I quipped excitedly. "I have got to get me one of these! Ha!"

Before I had time to think about what to do next, the annoying white horse lunged at me with a sword in its teeth. _Oh, you have got to be kidding me_, I thought. I started to fight with the frying pan once more, but I couldn't help but tell the horse how insane this was. You know what I said back when I realized that I was tied up by Blondie's hair? How I said I had seen it all? Well. As much as it pains me to admit this, since I pride myself on my superb intellect, I was wrong. Because fighting a horse with a sword it its mouth with a frying pan _definitel_y won first place in the "Top 10 Wild and Wacky Things that Flynn Rider Has Done". "You should know that this is the strangest thing I have ever done!"

Somehow the horse managed to knock the frying pan right out of my hands, and it tumbled to the ground below. The horse didn't give up though, and shoved the sword in my face. Defensively, I held up my hands."How about two out of three?" I suggested. He didn't seem to be too fond of that plan, but thankfully Blondie (for who knows what reason) decided to help me: She threw some of her hair around one of my hands and yanked me off the ledge. "Flynn!" she yelled. As she did, I waved cockily at the horse. _See ya! Nice fighting with you. May we _never_ do it again. _Seriously, there's only so many insane things that I could take in one day….

…And swinging by Blondie's hair lower and lower to the ground, while the Stabbs swiped their swords at me, was one of them. Still, I would be lying if I didn't enjoy the completely bewildered and annoyed expressions on their faces as they unsuccessfully tried to get me. "Ha!" I taunted them smugly. "You should see your faces! Because you look-…"

My chest smashed painfully into a solid wooded beam. "…ridiculous," I finished in a breathless voice. You might think my reaction was extreme but trust me. Crashing into a piece of wood is _not _one those things that you need to experience to know that it hurts. Like the dickens. The breath was totally knocked out of me for about a whole minute. I couldn't talk much either, which was a true tragedy for someone who loves to hear their own voice as much as I do. Once I stopped feeling like I had been hit in the chest by ten white guard horses, I climbed up off the beam into a long wooden chute that had some water in it. I kept hold of Blondie's hair just in case it would come in handy.

And as it turned out it did. I know Rapunzel-when she tells this story- calls Maximus (when we didn't know his name yet) the Big White Horse. But honestly, I can't call him that- it doesn't fully express how much of an irritation, and burr under my saddle, that horse was. So, for brevity, I'll just call him the Annoying White Horse, or the AWH for short, to fall in line with Rapunzel. Anyway, the AWH was not one to give up without a fight, and began to kick down the beams that held up the dam…quite successfully. The wooden beam fell precisely where it needed to if they wanted to cross over to where Blondie was, and the AWH quickly took advantage of it. He instantly began to chase after her.

I couldn't let her get caught by them, not when she had done so much to help me. So I immediately yelled to her. "Come on, Blondie! Jump!" Since she was such a brave girl, she didn't hesitate for a second and jumped off the cliff, seconds before the AWH would have caught her with his teeth- and seconds before the dam burst. I watched to make sure she landed safely (which she did, almost gracefully), and then she began to run toward a tunnel in the side of the rocks. I followed her, though much less stylishly, I must admit. The chute that I was in decided that- to make everything more challenging for me- it would be a good time to completely fall apart. I was lucky that I didn't break my neck, considering I was almost ten feet in the air when it collapsed. Once I reached the ground, I immediately ran after Blondie, even scooping up her hair in my hands, toward the tunnel.

To complicate matters further, a gigantic stone pillar decided to fall in our direction and the Stabbs kept chasing us. But Blondie and I managed to reach the tunnel before we were crushed by the pillar, and I even managed to rescue her frying pan. For a minute, I relaxed because I thought we were safe.

As it turned out, I couldn't have been more wrong.


	6. Rapunzel's Magic Glowing Hair vs the Wat

AN: I'm actually (again) really pleased with this chapter because I think it's pretty funny. Of course, I crack up at my own writing anyway, so that doesn't mean that you'll find it as amusing. But I hope you do.

School update- 2 more finals and a paper. YAY. I do want to know who invented finals, though, so I can hit them with my own personal Hesty.

-FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled

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><p><strong>Chapter 6- Rapunzel's Magic Glowing Hair vs. the Water<strong>

"To die will be an awfully big adventure."

-James M. Barrie, _Peter Pan _

**Y**ou would think that we _would_ have been safe- there was an impassable stone pillar between us and the guards, us and the Stabbs. However, although the pillar could keep out all those people who wanted to get me, it didn't keep out the water: the water began to pour in, and Blondie and I immediately rushed away from it, hoping that there was some way to get out.

But-and quite unfortunately- all we found was a very stony dead end. I glanced at Blondie for a brief second. Her face was grave, and it was obvious to me that she knew enough about the world to know that, unless we found a way out, she would drown.

Somehow I couldn't let that happen, and before you start thinking I'm some kind of do-gooder, I wasn't. Need I remind you that if she drowned, I would drown too? Of course I didn't want that. What would happen to my island dream then? Besides, I was too young and handsome to die. And if I _had _to die someday, I wanted it to be somehow…..spectacular and dramatic. Drowning didn't accomplish that at all. In fact, if I had heard that somebody as famous as Flynn Rider had….drowned, I would probably laugh. It was just such a pathetic way to die.

Right. You're giving me that "and I care why?" look again. On with the story. So, before you think I'm some selfish jerk, I didn't want _her_ to die either. If I was too handsome and young to die, then she was too pretty and young to die. Besides, it would be so incredibly unfair to her if she did. It wasn't her fault that I was such a good thief that everyone had the urge to capture and incarcerate me. Anyway, since I've now established that I wanted neither of us to die, I dived into the cold water, searching for some kind of way out. It was much too dark, though, to really see anything- just utterly black water that seemed to go on and on. While I was doing that, she was trying to pound some kind of dent into the hard stone wall with her frying pan. Kind of silly of her, but I appreciated what she was trying to do. I resurfaced when I couldn't hold my breath any longer. I noticed that she was still pounding the rocks with her frying pan, and I examined the rocks too, searching for some kind of weakness. However, the only thing I found was a sharp rock that scraped my hand- and gave me a very painful gash. I tried bravely to ignore the burning though, and dove under once again. And once again, I found absolutely nothing.

I resurfaced again, despondent now because I couldn't find a way of escape. "It's no use," I told her. "I can't see anything." She looked at me for a second, then took a deep breath and plunged under the water. Immediately, I dived down and pulled her up. I couldn't let her drown herself trying to find a way out, even if we were minutes away from drowning anyway. Besides, I wasn't sure if she knew how to swim. "Hey, there's no point!" I said, gently pushing a lock of hair out of her eyes. "It's pitch black down there." She stared at me, her face crumpling in despair. And I could tell she finally understood the dire situation in which we had found ourselves. She slumped against the stone wall.

I suppose that she finally realized that we were about to die. Funny thing about near-death experiences is that the things you think about are….pretty strange (and I would know, as I'm sure you've heard. I've only had around three of them (or maybe four. Some days I lose track. In any case, three in this story). Well, I guess the last doesn't count because I pretty much actually_ did_ die. I remember thinking that this is when some people think about things that they wished they_ had_ done, and others think about things that they wished they _hadn't _done. Or, in other words, what they regretted. I firmly fell into the latter category, but most people probably only regretted a few things. I regretted pretty much everything I had done in my life since I was about eleven years old. In case you were wondering, that was about ten years worth of regrets. But the thing I regretted the most was forcing Blondie to go to the Snuggly Duckling. If I hadn't, well….she would probably be safe. Ugh. Why did I have to be such a confounded idiot sometimes? It was one thing to doom myself through my utter stupidity; it was quite another to bring another innocent person-a pretty and kind girl- down with me. I glanced at her, hoping she wasn't too mad at me.

Tears welled up in her eyes. "This is all my fault," she said softly. "She was right. I _never _should have done this. I'm so….I'm so sorry, Flynn." She began to cry quietly. Her tears made my heart wrench again because I actually…felt bad for her. Shocking. Who knew I was capable of sympathy?

I also stared at her, once again bewildered by her. She was sorry? Why should _she_ be sorry? She hadn't done anything but have a dream- like everyone had, like I had myself. I couldn't let her take the blame for that, for chasing after something that obviously meant a lot to her. Like you've probably figured out, if anyone was to blame, it was _me._ This whole mess was entirely my fault. If I hadn't been such a complete jerk and tried to lose her- and if we had never gone to the Snuggly Duckling- we would probably be safe traveling on the road to Caermoor instead of trapped in a cave after the chase. A chase that was (once again) all because of me. If anybody should be sorry it should be me, and I found that I was. She didn't deserve to drown with a disreputable thief named Flynn Rider. Flynn Rider….I pondered that for a minute. Hmmm. She had called me Flynn, and as far as she knew, that was my true name. It wasn't (but I'm sure you already knew that because I go by another name entirely). Well, I reasoned, if I was truly going to die, I might as well die with the name that I had been born with- the name my mother had given me. Besides, my namesake would _never_ do something as stupid as get trapped after a chase and drown. He was much too clever. Great. So I wasn't just a disgrace to my poor mother, but also my hero. This was_ really_ not my day. "Eugene."

She immediately stopped crying and she looked at me, confused. "What?" she asked with a teary voice.

I decided I might as well tell her. After all, what did I have to lose? My reputation would die with me anyway. "My real name is Eugene Fitzherbert," I told her. "Someone might as well know." _Since I'm about to die, _I finished in my head.

She smiled slightly, as if she understood that I had just told her my deepest secret. My name wasn't quite that, but it was close. "I have magic hair that glows when I sing," she said.

I stared at her again, shocked. "What?" Had she really said what I thought she said? No, there was no way- it was too weird. Maybe she had said….I have tragic flair that flows when I swing.

On second thought, maybe not. That wasn't any less odd. But still. Magic hair that…glows? When she _sings_? I looked at her, wondering if she was actually in earnest.

She was. In fact, her eyes were starting to shine as if her glowing hair was something stupendous. She clung to her hair and repeated excitedly, "I have….magic hair that glows when I sing!"

The water had risen to our necks now, and I figured we were only seconds away from total immersion. Drowning would probably follow soon after and so I couldn't understand her excitement at all. Didn't she know by now that we were probably going to die? I took the deepest breath that I could, hoping, I guess, to prolong the inevitable. Blondie, though, began to sing quickly. "Flower gleam and glow, let your power shine…."

The water engulfed us, and I speculated about how long it would be before we would both suffocate and drown. Suddenly, though, golden beams of light began to shine, and I wondered for a brief second if I had died already and reached the pearly gates. The light didn't come from heaven though, but Blondie's hair: it glowed almost like a kind of lantern. Apparently, she hadn't been kidding when she said it glowed when she sang- because it had just started to glow and she had sung. It was the strangest sight I had ever seen, and I wondered if I was experiencing some kind of weird hallucinations from the hits on the head I had experienced earlier in the day, hallucinations that caused me to see things that couldn't really happen- like magic glowing hair. Shocked, I put a hand to my mouth and just stared at her, and at her hair. Her hair started to glow from the top of her head to the bottom- and illuminated some kind of bottom of the water as well. At the very bottom, though, there were a pile of loose rocks.

Well, hallucinations or not, I couldn't resist checking it out. I darted a glance at Blondie, and it was clear from her face that she saw it as well. I was the first to dive down there, though, and quite determinedly. Like I said, I had no interest in drowning, so I pulled the rocks apart (hoping there was some kind of way out) and she soon started to help me. These rocks were movable, but that doesn't mean it didn't take effort to pry them apart. But it was worth it because eventually my hand clutched glorious- and waterless- air. We tumbled headfirst out of the tunnel and into more water, but this time it was a river. And rivers I could deal with. I swam to the shore, and took a deep gulp of air. Now that I was no longer in danger of drowning, I began to think hard about her hair. Had it actually_ glowed_? It must have, because otherwise I would be dead. Right? But it was still unbelievable.

Blondie, on the other hand, wasn't thrown at all by her hair, and was more concerned with the fact that we hadn't died than the fact that her hair glowed. "We made it," she said, relieved. She beamed with joy that she hadn't met an early and watery grave.

I, on the other hand, was entirely too stunned by her hair to rejoice. "Her hair glows," I said, completely incredulous. You might find my reaction odd, since Rapunzel's story is generally considered to be a fairy tale-a tale where magic is prevalent. This is true, because there is quite a bit of magic in this story. And most of that magic comes from Rapunzel herself. But Corona, on the other hand, doesn't have much magic. Period. There aren't fairies, or talking horses, or crazy witches, or fiery dragons as is common in other fairy tales (which by definition should have a fairy in it). It's actually almost freakishly normal for a country. The closest I had ever been to magic at that point was the magic that my mother made when she told me fairy tales.

Blondie bounded happily back onto the shore. "We're alive! We're alive!" she said giddily.

I was still hung up on her hair. "I didn't see that coming," I said, ruefully running a hand through my hair. You're staring at me smugly as if you think I lost my mind, and I have to say I find that incredibly annoying. You think you would have handled this situation better? Fine, but there's a huge difference between hearing someone say they have glowing hair, and actually _seeing_ that hair glow. I'm telling you, something like that can really rock your world. And I just told you that the land of Corona wasn't known for magic.

Blondie tried to get my attention, probably because she thought I was losing my mind too. "Eugene," she said. It's actually kind of funny how after I told her what my real name was, she immediately called me by it. As if I had actually _liked_ my real name or something. I hadn't. Come on. If I had liked my name, why would I have changed it? I didn't mind the Eugene part- because the meaning was noble, and, of course, I was an incredibly noble person. But I loathed my last name- I just hated it and that was mostly because it reminded of someone I had tried very hard to forget. When I was eleven and started thieving, I told everyone (well, everyone that hadn't known me as Eugene. But, then again, I told them even those who _had _known me as Eugene) that my name was Flynn Rider. If you're curious, I did this for two reasons, one of which you might have picked up: One, a new name had the effect of erasing my old past. Two, Eugene doesn't sound like a thief. It just doesn't, no matter how much you might try to make it sound roguish. Eugene sounds like some kind of…I don't know, maybe some kind of academic or something, and I sure wasn't that. So, until today, I hadn't been called Eugene for about ten years. It was pretty weird to be called that again, and if Blondie had been anyone else, I would have told her that she needed to call me Flynn. But I don't know, there was something different about her saying my name.

But that didn't mean that I wasn't too stunned to even hear her say it. "The hair _actually_ glows." It was one of the strangest things I had ever seen. My thought process literally went like this: Hair. Magic hair. Magic hair that glows. Magic hair that glows when she _sings_. Magic hair that glowed when she sang- and I had actually seen it happen. It seemed utterly impossible, but I couldn't deny what I had seen.

Blondie tried again to get my attention. "Eugene," she repeated.

However, I didn't hear her _that_ time either. I have to confess that I was so completely baffled by her hair that I actually started to talk to her frog. Maybe it could explain to me the reason why her hair glowed in the first place. Something that strange had to have some kind of explanation. "Why does her hair glow?" I asked it, half-crazed now (and almost on the verge of hysterics).

She again attempted to get my attention, because-as she explained later- "Eugene would never talk to Pascal if he was completely sane," (which is actually true) and she was concerned about my mental health. "Eugene!" she said, very loudly.

Finally her voice managed to cut through my foggy brain. "What?" I said with wide eyes. What could she possibly say at that moment? Part of me wondered if she was going to explain something about why her hair glowed, or something reassuring to make me feel….less on the verge of lunacy. However, that wasn't the case at all. If anything, what she said made it slightly worse.

She was perfectly calm though. It's actually amazing how calm she was after she had captured a wanted thief, convinced thugs to stop beating me up, escaped the Stabs and guards, and nearly drowned. And this was a girl who had never been out of her tower! Whereas I, who had seen almost everything, was undone by her glowing hair. Anyway, what she ended up saying, as she pulled her hair out of the river was, "It doesn't just glow."

Like that was reassuring. So her hair didn't just glow while she sang, but did something else entirely. I looked at her frog again, and, maybe it was my craziness, but I could swear it was almost grinning with some kind of sick pleasure at my discomfort. "Why's he smiling at me?"

Would the insanity of this day _never_ end?


	7. Eugene vs the Unbelievable Hair

AN: So in all honesty, I did not expect that it would take me this long to get this chapter up. But it WAS the all-important campfire scene, and as such it deserves a lot of time (and I hope it was worth the wait). I'm mostly pleased with how it turned out, and I hope you enjoy it.

FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7- Eugene vs. the Unbelievable Hair<strong>

"I have tried in my own way to be free."

-Leonard Cohen

**A**fter we had pulled ourselves out of the river, the sun had started to set. So I told her that we'd better camp out tonight, because I had no intention of traipsing around the woods all night, soaking wet. She agreed, and patiently waited for me to find a suitable camping spot, which I finally did.

I also decided that we should make a fire, to help dry our wet clothes. Though I wasn't too good at it; it took me multiple times to light it. But that was partly because I was still thinking about the weirdness of her hair- the hair knocked her best friend frog out of first place in my list of Top Ten Weird Things About Blondie. But her glowing hair did partly explain why she had thought I wanted her hair when she first met me. Because you know, magic glowing hair- it's something everyone wants. You never know when you'll need glowing hair to light up a room. In case you didn't know, that was sarcasm. The mystery of her hair was still just that…a mystery.

I grunted while I tried to light the fire, but eventually I was successful. "See, I _told _you I could do it, Blondie," I told her triumphantly. "Never underestimate the power of Flynn Rider!"

"Yes, I see," she said diplomatically. Even though she looked calm, she was looking at me…kind of oddly. "Very good."

I thought briefly of asking her if there was something bothering her, but she began to speak again before I could."Um, so do you remember what I said about my hair?" she asked hesitantly. "About it being magical?"

Okay. So I know the world has titled on its axis and we've entered this alternate universe where hair actually glows. But that doesn't mean I lost my perfect memory. And you shut up about it meaning I lost my sanity. Because I totally did not, thank you very much. Do I have to repeat my previous explanation about the profound lack of magic in Corona?

Anyway, back to the story and my brilliant response. "Of course I do!" I told her with an incredulous look. "I never forget anything." Besides that, I _especially_ didn't forget something that somebody had told me only around two hours before.

But the odd expression remained on her face. "And you remember….that I said…it doesn't just glow?" she asked carefully, as if she was worried about my reaction. Probably she was thinking about my….minor astonishment after I saw her hair glow.

I gave her another surprised and incredulous look. "Yes. And I'm still waiting for you to explain what you mean by that." That was absolutely true, but I wasn't sure why she was telling me this now though. Couldn't she have told me before this, like when she had first said it in the first place? I mean I was rational enough to hear it, don't you think? Well, I do. So I don't know why she had waited until I had…..oh. Ugh. "Oh no," I said, horrified. "You're not going to tell me that it can light a fire, are you? Because you should have told me that before I…." _….wasted all that time trying to light that blasted fire. _

She cut in quickly, even though by the look on her face, she wasn't somebody who interrupted people that often. Of course not. "No, no!" she said. "It can't light a fire. But it can do something else." She watched me carefully, as if she thought I was going to freak out again.

Please. I'm not that easily surprised. I'm a thief! "Oh, you mean it can do something more than be a big lantern?" I joked. "Because, you know…."

Unexpectedly, she grew impatient with me. "Eugene!"she said, clearly exasperated. "Just get over here, and I'll show you okay?"

I stared at her in surprise. I hadn't pegged her as someone who could be particularly…..snappish. Yet I did what she said anyway. "Yeah, sure, Blondie," I said, and walked over to her. I sat by her on the log, though I left a fair amount of space between the two of us. I was many things, but a creeper wasn't actually one of them. Besides, I didn't want to scare her, especially when she looked so nervous already.

She took a deep breath. "Okay," she said. "So remember when you told me 'don't ask questions' today?"

Seriously? She had to ask me that _again?_ Hello? Did I suddenly warp in our alternate universe and turn into Morris Stabbington (aka an idiot)? "Of course!" I told her. "Like I said, Flynn Rider…"

Had she actually just rolled her eyes at me? Whoa. No girl had ever rolled their eyes at me, and here she had done it twice in one day! Blondie here was something else, for sure. "….never forgets anything," she finished. "Right. I got it," she said with a hint of sarcasm. "Well, I need _you_ to not ask _me _questions right now, okay?"

I decided to humor her, and do as she said. Why not? It could be an interesting social experiment to see what she would tell me. "Well, sure, Blondie."

She sighed in apparent relief."Great. So can I have your injured hand, please?"

Stunned, I stared at her again."My…_what?"_ Was this some kind of strange come-on? Like woo, give me your injured hand, wink-wink nudge-nudge? Let me show you something?

Her eyes didn't look flirty at all though. If anything, they looked…..nervous. "Your injured hand," she said again politely. "I need it to show you what my hair does besides glow."

On second thought, she didn't strike me as somebody who played those kinds of games. Where would she have learned them anyway? Besides, she radiated a kind of….purity and innocence. No, I decided, she wasn't making some kind of weird come-on, even if her request was awfully strange. "Um….Well, okay," I agreed finally. I extended my hand with the gash out to her.

"Thank you," she said, and cautiously took my hand in hers. Obviously she had never held any man's hand before. Thought I guess it isn't fair to say that what she was doing was "holding" my hand. Because she so wasn't (even if it felt as if she was to me. My hand actually started to tingle- hers just felt so nice, so small and soft. Ugh. What was I _thinking?_ ). She was examining it as if she was some kind of physician or something, entirely silent as she did so. Then she started to wrap the end of her hair around it.

My whacked-out pleasure evaporated then. Was she seriously wrapping her _hair _around my hand? Could this be any weirder? What could her hair possibly do that made it necessary to wrap it around my hand? Now the silence felt as stifling as our almost drowning and I had to break it. "So," I said. "You're being strangely cryptic as you wrap your magic hair around my injured hand."

Suddenly her hair scraped my scratch painfully and I winced (but don't get the wrong impression that her hair was rough or anything. Because it so wasn't- it was unbelievably soft and silky). "Ah…"

"Sorry," she apologized. A barely audible sigh escaped her lips. "Now, don't…don't freak out, okay?"

I kind of stared at her for a second, and immediately tensed. Can I just say now that when somebody is going to show you something, it's _never_ a good thing when they preface it with something like don't freak out? Because if they say that, it's pretty likely that you will. And, I'm embarrassed to say, because I pride myself on my composure, that I totally did freak out even though she told me not to.

But that was in the future. Right in that moment, she closed her eyes and began to sing softly:

_Flower gleam and glow_

_Let your power shine_

_Make the clock reverse_

_Bring back what once was mine_

_Heal what has been hurt_

_Change the fate's design_

_Save what has been lost_

_Bring back what was once was mine_

_What once was mine_

As soon as she began to sing, her hair began to glow again- but this time, I could see it shine from the top of her head, and continued to spread through her entire seventy feet of hair. It was actually one of the most amazing things I had ever seen, but at the same time, it was vaguely disturbing. I had never seen anything quite like it before. I glanced at her frog, and he seemed to smile at me again, and pointed to one of his paws- did he mean something about my hand? What? I looked at my hand, and the hair around it had begun to glow….and almost emanate some kind of heat too. I have to tell you that I had no idea what was happening at all. In all honesty, I was completely bewildered.

Soon, she finished and cautiously met my eyes- almost hesitantly, as if she didn't know how I would react. Please. But something about the way she looked kind of….threw me, so I carefully removed her hair from my hand. And you'll _never_ guess what I saw.

Wait. Did you just say that my hand looked completely whole? Like nothing ever happened? Aw, you've heard this story before, haven't you? That is the only explanation for the complete lack of surprise in your face. Well, even if _you're_ not amazed by that, I sure was. And you would be too, or you're in complete denial. I mean, come on. Her hair totally erasing my gash was unreal- and the weirdest thing I had ever seen. And I thought her hair glowing was weird! There was only one thing stranger than magic hair that glowed when she sang- and that was magic hair that glowed_ and _healed when she sang. My mouth opened, and even though I had never screamed like a girl before…..I was about to scream like a girl.

Or I would have if she hadn't immediately pleaded me not to. "Please, don't freak out!"

The scream instantly died in my throat. "Ahhhh…." I sputtered stupidly, while I scrambled frantically for something to say. It wasn't often that I was without words, but after seeing her hair glow _and_ heal, there was too many things to say- and too few at the same time. I mean, how could I express the extent of my amazement in words? So eventually I gave up, and came up with something else, put the attention on her. "I'm not freaking out, are you freaking out?" Not very clever, but hey. I wasn't at my best.

I'm not going to deny that it was a rather idiotic question, because she clearly wasn't freaking out. She was almost annoyingly calm- maybe she did this kind of thing often? But how did she know that her hair would do that anyway? Like, did she wake up one day with some scratch and said hey, why don't I just sing a little ditty and it will go away? Yay? Isn't it stupendous to be me? Maybe if her hair had done that for a while, it ceased to surprise her. Was that even possible?

Whatever. It hurt my brain too much to try and imagine it. I guess you can get just used to anything, even magical glowing healing hair. But to me, this was just too bizarre and I still wasn't used to it. A million questions popped into my mind to ask her; chief among them was had her hair always done that? "I'm just interested in your hair and the uh…._magical_ qualities that it possesses," I said with complete fake nonchalance as I looked at her. "How long has it being doing that, exactly?"

She smiled slightly and shrugged. "Um…forever, I guess?" Forever? _Really?_ I continued to look at her.

She sighed deeply. "Mother says that when I was a baby, people tried to cut it. They wanted to take it for themselves."

Her eyes grew….almost sad then. Which wasn't actually a typical expression for her, I could tell. She was an almost annoyingly perky person, and she'd been generally happy since we had left the tower. Well, except when she was sad about her mother….and when we were about to drown…..and now. But it wasn't too hard to imagine why: her story was making me sad too. The thought of somebody exploiting this sweet girl (which she absolutely was-I'd been nothing but a brute to her, and she still tried to save me from being beat up, captured by guards….she had healed my hand, and apologized for a mess that was my fault entirely. She was unbelievably kind, probably the nicest girl I had known since my mother) for her hair….disgusted me. Ugh. That meant I disgusted myself too, because, like I said, I had been a complete jerk to her this whole day (in fact, I think this day was making a record for jerky things I had done, starting from the very beginning). So why she was telling me all this was beyond me. Why she trusted me to keep all this a secret was beyond me too. Don't get the wrong impression though, because I wasn't actually going to tell her secret. I wasn't that cruel. More seriously, I think I've already established that I wasn't someone whom you could trust. But somehow she did. She had to, otherwise she wouldn't have told me her deepest secret (and it was clear that this was).

However, she was still talking. She moved her hair so I could see a tiny stub of brown among the blond. "But once it's cut," she continued. "It turns brown and loses its power. A gift like that…It has to be protected. That's why Mother never let me…" Words died up in her throat. "That's why I never left and…" She stared at her hands, instead of at me.

Suddenly, all of those nagging questions that I had about her were answered: Like why she acted so afraid of me when we met, why she had thought I wanted her hair ….and why she hadn't immediately answered my question about she hadn't left the tower before. I had a pretty good feeling that that's what she was attempting to say now. Unexpectedly, I felt much more than a twinge of sympathy for her. Trying to help her, I finished her sentence for her."…That's why you never left that tower." I understood now why she hadn't left, but that didn't mean that I agreed with it: You see, if she didn't tell anybody that her hair healed (which _was_ an option; sure, people would wonder like I did about the length, but I hadn't figured it out. And if I hadn't, others wouldn't either. Besides, do I have to mention the profound lack of magic in Corona again? Nobody would be expecting magical glowing healing hair), then they wouldn't exploit her- and she'd be just fine (and a lot happier). I didn't get why her mother couldn't have realized that. It wasn't exactly difficult logic. Maybe her mother was stupid? Though how she could be with such a smart daughter was beyond my comprehension.

She met my eyes, almost tentatively. "And you're still going to go back?" I asked her in my most gentle tone. Deep down, I didn't want her to- I had seen how happy she had been when she had finally left her tower, and if I were her, I couldn't imagine going back after being free.

And apparently she felt the same way. "No!" she said immediately. "Yes?" She sighed again. "It's complicated." She buried her face in her hands. Another wave of sympathy washed over me- this poor sweet girl, imprisoned by her hair. It was awful. Her face remained in her hands, and I hoped she wasn't going to cry again. Because I had a strong feeling I wouldn't be able to resist comforting her in some way…and not with words. I had a similar urge to sit on my hands so I wouldn't. It would ruin my dream to start liking this girl- even if she was ridiculously easy to like.

She ran her hands through her hair and sighed. Then she looked at me…..almost coyly. "So, Eugene Fitzherbert, huh?"

Huh. I had almost forgotten that I had told her my real name, which was stupid because she had totally called me that. "Ah…yeah," I said. I didn't know exactly what to say after that- my childhood was….rather disheartening. And no one usually wanted to hear it, or even cared. Generally, people saw me as one thing- and that was the amazing thief Flynn Rider. And usually that was okay, but that meant that they didn't know who I was before. Usually I was also okay to keep it that way, but with her it didn't seem fair. She had unveiled her soul to me, and it didn't seem right for me to give her nothing in return. "But I'll save you the sob story of poor orphan Eugene Fitzherbert. It's a little…" Hmmm. How to explain that my story pretty much…would depress anyone. "Well, it's a little bit of a downer."

Instead of saying something like oh okay, like most would have, she scouted closer to me and propped her chin in her hands- her clear way of saying she wanted to know more. Unbelievable. Why did she care? I forced a laugh to mask my surprise. What to tell her? I really didn't want to talk about my mother….or my father. I guess I could tell her about where I found my name though. "There was this book," I said finally. "A book I used to read to all the younger kids- _The Tales of Flynnigan Rider_." If you haven't read this book, you really need to. It's amazing; I still have a copy of it that I read sometimes. I glanced at her. She still looked interested- more than interested actually. Her eyes were…..almost fascinated by my story. Wow.

Well, I might as well play it up as much as possible. "Swash-buckling rogue," I continued. "Richest man alive. Not bad with the ladies either." I looked meaningfully at her. "Not that he'd ever brag about it, or course."

She smiled at me. You know something? She really has a lovely smile. " he a thief too?" she asked.

Huh. I had no idea she knew that I was a thief. I sure hadn't told her. In fact, I had been very careful _not_ to. How would she feel knowing-that after trying so hard to avoid ruffians- she was traveling around with a wanted felon? The irony of the situation killed me. But I guess she had read the wanted poster back at the Snuggly Duckling. Clever girl. And now she thought that I modeled myself after Flynnigan Rider because he was a thief. And he wasn't. "Ah, well no." I looked away from her, feeling kind of foolish. Here I'd been using his name, and he wasn't even a thief. He didn't _need_ to be one, the fortunate bloke.

"Actually," I told her. "He had enough money to do anything that he wanted to do, he could go anywhere that he wanted to go." Or, in other words, he was completely free to do whatever, be whomever he wanted to be. Lucky rascal. He had that freedom that I had always craved- freedom from the stigma of my last name, and the almost invisibility that came with it. But he never had that problem: When he talked, people actually paid attention to him. What he did_ mattered_ to people. And I wanted the same for me. I wanted to be _somebody_. Though I guess doing that through stealing doesn't make sense to you, but it doesn't have to (though I assume you've heard the phrase "money is power"? My sentiments exactly). It did to me. At least it had until I had told Rapunzel about it. Then it didn't make any sense at all. Surely there was a way to do something important that wasn't thieving. I just had to find out what that was.

She had stared at her hands before, and I supposed it was my turn. Because that's just what I did. "And, and, for a kid with nothing, I don't know," I almost muttered. "It just seemed like the better option." _Better than being Eugene the nobody forever. _

I looked up at her again, curious to what her reaction would be. But "Hmmm," was all she said, but in a completely neutral voice. And her eyes were the same: no condemnation, no censure, no criticism- just an attempt to understand….._me_. Amazing.

As nice as it was, this was enough soul-bearing for one day. "You can't tell anyone about this, okay?" I told her, trying to steer the conversation in a whole new direction. "It could ruin my whole reputation."

She smiled again. "Ah," she said, almost teasingly. "Well, we wouldn't want that!"

Now we were more on my comfortable turf- witticisms. "Well, a fake reputation is all a man has," I joked back. She laughed at that, and then met my eyes again, with a large smile in both her eyes and her face. You know something else? Her eyes are really beautiful- they were big and green ….and altogether lovely. They're the kind of eyes you can just stare at forever, and I have to say that I pretty much did that for at least thirty seconds without realizing what I was doing. While I did, I had to admit that I was more than a little attracted to this sweet girl-_Rapunzel, _not Blondie. And if I was reading her right, she was too, though I doubt she was aware of that yet.

But this, in other words, was a complete recipe for disaster. I did _not_ need to fall in love right now, it would ruin basically everything. I blinked, knowing that I needed to break up this little party. She probably wouldn't, because I had an inkling that she wasn't feeling the heat that I was-and let's just say it wasn't from the fire. The air almost fizzled with the chemistry between us. Need. To. Go. _Now._ I stood up. "Um, well, I should, uh," I scrambled for some bogus excuse to leave. My gaze wandered over to the fire. Fire. Fire_wood_. Good. _"_I should go get some more firewood." Without waiting for her to say something, I started to walk off. It would be better that I did, before she realized that the fire didn't _need_ any more wood.

But her voice stopped me."Hey," she said. I turned around and looked at her. _Please don't figure out my excuse, please don't figure out my excuse…. _

She hadn't. In fact, what she said was nothing relating to fires at all. Thankfully. "For the record," she said. "I like Eugene Fitzherbert_ much_ better than Flynn Rider."

Unbelievable. Had she truly just said that? Did she know what that meant to me? She had basically said that she liked Eugene the orphan- the nobody- over Flynn Rider, the notorious thief. Really? Nobody had cared about him in ten years."Well, you'd be the first," I told her. "But thank you."

And _then_ I walked off into the woods.


	8. Eugene vs Himself

A/N: Okay, I'm sorry (again!) that this chapter took so long, and that it's on the short side. I hope you like it anyway.

I do have something to ask you guys about. One of the reasons that this chapter took so long is that I kept getting inspiration for scenes later in the story, and instead of trying to remember them until I reached that part, as soon as I thought about it, I wrote them down. And they just kept coming, and I began to think that it might be better to combine them into a whole new story or something because I don't want to do nothing with them.

So here's my questions for you guys, and please answer them in your reviews.

1. Would you like me to add them at the end of this story- and make it on the long side- or start a new one right after the ending of this story (which generally I planned to be the same as the end of the movie)?

2. If I did write a story set right after the movie, would you guys actually read/review it? I loved writing UA, but it was frustrating sometimes that people didn't really read it. I don't write just to get reviews, but they do keep me going-they provide motivation for me.

3. If yes to #2, what would you want to happen in that story? I was thinking that it would be something like they get used to life in the palace, Rapunzel starts her lessons with Lady Gray, deals with Gothel stuff, and Eugene has to go to court for being Flynn Rider. Though I swear it won't be a copy of Doodlegirl's story or Her Everything [besides that, I can't write about them doing _it_...just can't do it. Partly because to keep my own integrity as a writer I don't have my characters do anything that I wouldn't do myself-this is within reason of course, because obviously i don't go off and steal crowns like Eugene. And partly because I'm a history major, and them doing that when they weren't married was frowned upon in the time period I've picked (Middle Ages/Renaissance), and was called something that started with an f and ended with n.] but logically it doesn't make sense that the king and queen would just let him live there without some kind of trial (as a poli sci minor, i'm wondering if they actually condemned him without a trial in the movie-which is completely WRONG). I know there's stories like this already (with over 700 stories now in this section it's hard to come up with something completely original), and that's why I need to know you are actually interested in this.

4. If yes to #2, who would you like to be the narrator? Eugene, Rapunzel, or both?

At the end of this chapter, I'm going to give you snippets of the stuff that I've been writing, and you can tell me how you like it.

Much, much 3 to my readers! Thank you for making this my most reviewed story to date!

FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 8-Eugene vs. Himself<strong>

These are the times that try men's souls.

-Thomas Paine, _The American Crisis_

**As **soon as I was sure Rapunzel couldn't see me anymore, I leaned against a tree and breathed deeply. Wow was all I could think. That last thirty seconds there was like the Sahara Desert. Not, mind you, that I actually knew what the Sahara Desert was like, being that I had never been there (why I would _want_ to go there is up for debate. I wasn't big on camels….or dunes. Cities were more my style. Paris, anyone?). But if I had to guess, it would have been like that, except around ten times hotter.

I think you can tell where I'm going with this: Something was sprouting up between the two of us, but I wasn't sure exactly what to think about it. Whatever it was, though, it was something…..almost sweet. I tried to deny that I was very attracted to her (again), but I somehow couldn't do it. She was just so….incredibly _nice_. And smart. And brave. And sympathetic. And beautiful. And…

And…basically perfect in every single way. She was one of those kinds of girls who didn't know how nice, smart, brave, sympathetic, beautiful, and attractive she was. Which, of course, made her even more attractive. In fact, the more I got to know her, the….more I _wanted_ to get to know her.

Oh, _man_, was I in trouble now. If I let my emotions run away with me….things would not turn out pretty. So, what was I going to do? What would Flynnigan Rider do? I evaluated the options.

Well, if he found an attractive girl he would…..option A-do what he wanted to do with her (an option that made me sick considering how innocent Rapunzel was) or, option B- if he liked her enough, pursue some kind of relationship (an option that wouldn't work because we were supposed to go our separate ways tomorrow-she to her tower, and me out of Corona).

Huh. Both outcomes of those options were bad. So much for my old buddy Flynningan. Thanks for nothing! I guess I would have to go with Option C, which was…..Hmmm. Option C, option C-I had to think about that for a minute before I came up with it: suppress my attraction and follow through with her deal. Yes, good. That was the new master plan. It wouldn't be that hard, right? I only had to be tough, resolute ….an island. _Just remember_, I told myself. _You are Mr. Rock, Mr. Island- she has no effect on you. Remember the good old days when you didn't need anybody and took nothing from nobody. _

Now that I had psyched myself up, I was about to start actually looking for firewood when I heard a shout.

"No!"

That was obviously her. I frowned. Was she talking to herself again? To her frog? It was soon apparent that she wasn't: I heard someone else say something, but it was too quiet for me to completely discern what it was. All I could make out was- _….how it is…so grown up… little miss_. Or, in other words, nothing that made any sense. Curiosity gnawed at me, and I had a strong urge to creep closer. But I knew it was really none of my business who she was talking to or what they were talking about. Still, I couldn't help but be as quiet as possible to see if I could hear anything else:

Random person (or hereafter RP): so sure…him this. Rapunzel (hereafter R): How… RP: This is…with you… …deceive….give…see. R: fine… RP: Ha…watch….as soon…him….fast…floating lights R:…lights….still here. RP: always…child…pet…leave you…give….dreamboat…him R: I will….be sure… RP: that…not if…leaves…you so. R:….wait! RP: No….your choice.

Silence.

I have to say that I did end up creeping closer, but not so close that I knew exactly who she was talking to or what she was talking about. So, I didn't actually know precisely what they were discussing, though I wondered if the "him" they were talking about was me. What other "he" could she know?

Well, I was intrigued. I quickly grabbed some wood, and made my way back to the clearing. While I was walking, I decided-in order to not scare her-I would say something before I saw her, something funny, witty, and brilliant of course….something about how I wished my hand was stronger, because the wood was actually kind of heavy. I also purposefully stepped on a twig. "So, can I ask you something?" I said loudly. "Is there any chance that I'm going to get super-strength in my hand? Because I'm not going to lie-_that_ would be stupendous."

Rapunzel was facing away from me, completely silent. Almost like she hadn't heard me at all. Or almost as if that conversation had….upset and disturbed her. Otherwise I was sure she would have laughed…or at least something to acknowledge that she had heard me.

I couldn't help it- I was concerned about her. "Hey. You all right?"

She looked over her shoulder at me, though her eyes were a million miles away. "Oh. Sorry. Yes," she said._ "_I'm all right. Just…lost in thought, I guess."

Unbelievable. She was lying- totally and completely lying to me, to my face even (something I hadn't thought she was capable of). She wasn't all right at all. Still, I didn't know what to do because I couldn't very well insist that she tell me what she was upset about. So I resorted to my default: joking. I shrugged, as if it made no difference to me (which it did- a lot), but maybe I could somehow cheer her up. "I mean, because here's the thing," I continued as I began to throw wood on the already sizzling fire. "Superhuman good looks…I've always had them. Born with it. But superhuman strength? Can you imagine the _possibilities _of this?"

I glanced at her-her eyes were still somewhere else entirely. _What was going on with her?_ I'd never seen her so….completely demoralized before, not even when we were drowning. It was almost like somebody had kicked her puppy or something. Which was absurd because as far as I knew she didn't have one (just a frog). Maybe somebody had told her the world was flat? Or that her lanterns weren't going to happen? That _would_ indeed devastate her.

Soon she started talking again."Yes, superhuman good looks," she said absently. Good. She must be okay enough to have heard me. Relief filled me, though that relief vanished immediately after what she said next. "And did those come from your mother or your father or both?"

I stared at her, shocked that she had actually asked me that. I also stopped putting wood into the fire. "_What?_" Was she serious? Did she honestly expect me to answer that?

All of a sudden a horrified expression crossed her face, and she sat down (hard!) on the log. "I'm sorry! I wasn't… thinking," she apologized. "You….you don't have to answer that if…if you don't want to."

I believed her- believed that she was sorry and that she wasn't thinking. But that still didn't erase the sick feeling in my stomach. I didn't like to talk about my parents, because thinking about my mother made me too sad, and thinking about my father made me too mad (as in, you don't want to be around me when I'm thinking about him, because you might accidentally get a fist in your face). Besides, most people hadn't actually cared about them- at least not before Rapunzel anyway- and didn't want to hear about them.

I think she looked just as miserable as I felt because her eyes were filled with remorse- as if she understood fully what she had asked me. "I'm sorry, Eugene." She had called me Eugene again. "Like I said, you don't…"

Something…something about her face made me what to tell her though. Maybe she would be the first to listen and try to understand. After all, she had listened to me about the whole Flynn Rider bit. So she wouldn't have asked if she didn't care, right? Even if she hadn't meant to ask me, somewhere deep down she must have wanted to know- not because she was some kind of snoop- but because she was just a sweet girl, who cared about people, even people like me. "No," I said finally as I stared at the fire, basically anywhere but at her. "I'll answer it."

"Okay," she whispered.

I sent my mind backward, back to a time when I had a mother- a lovely mother with sparkling green eyes, and lovely brown hair. "Most of my looks," I said at last, "came from my mother. My father….was never part of the picture, but my mother always told me that I had his eyes." _Unfortunately_ I had his eyes. To be honest with you, I hadn't wanted anything in common with him because he was a scummy, reprobate scoundrel and I loathed him.

"I'm so sorry," she said again. I wasn't sure what she was sorry about. Sorry that she had asked? Sorry that my looks came from my mother? Sorry that she was gone? I suddenly looked at her, almost amazed by the sympathy in her eyes….interest too. "Do you…would you like to hear about her?"

"I would love to," she said quietly. And see the nice thing about her is that she actually meant it. She _would_ love to hear about her. Others might say that they wanted to hear something, but they were only trying to be polite- and secretly wished that you would be quiet so they could go do something else. Or they listened so they could snobbishly tell your secrets to their snobby friends. Of course, Rapunzel wasn't like that at all. She didn't have a smidgen of snobbery in her body.

"You would have liked her," I told her. "She was always so happy, full of sunshine and light. Most of the time she was...more of a playmate than a mother. She was so full of spirit, and she was smart too. And I knew she loved me." You might find this surprising, but I had truly loved my mother- a lot. She was an amazing woman, so sweet and kind. Much like…Rapunzel really (so is it too surprising that I fell for Rapunzel so fast?). "She was actually…a little like you." Now, usually when people tell you that you're like their mother, it's not a good thing, but I could only hope that she would recognize it as the sincere compliment that it was.

She did. "Thank you," she said. "What…what happened to her?"

I stared at the fire again. "She… she…died when I was eleven. Consumption." Or, in reality, she died because my father, once again, was complete scum. Do you want to know what he did? It's a long story, actually, so I'd be surprised if you want to hear it. You do? Really? Well, that's just too bad. You'll have to wait until later in this story- and you'll just have to keep listening to me talk. Ha.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered.

I looked at her, sympathy not just in her eyes, but empathy too. Like she truly felt sad for me. "Thank you," I said. Then I blinked. How did we get off on that? I do believe it's time to talk about something else, or sleep even. Sleep would be good- I didn't have to worry about how much I was starting to like her if I was asleep. "Right. So, Rap-…" (you'll get nowhere if you call her that!) "…._Blondie_, we'd better get some sleep if we're going to see the town tomorrow," I told her.

She sighed. "Sure," she agreed.

XXXXXXXX

Soon we said goodnight and found somewhere to lay down- far apart, of course. Ha. I tried not to watch as she- adorably- made a pillow out of her hair, and wrapped it around herself like a blanket. I also tried not to think about her as I went to sleep. Now, usually I fall asleep fast, but that night I did stay awake thinking about her (even though I continued to try not to) and how wonderful I thought she was, especially after she had listened to me so kindly.

It was much harder than I thought it would be to fight my attraction to her, and I had pretty much failed. Instead of keeping the wall up between us, I had started to bring it down again, brick by brick- by telling her about my mother, something I never told anybody else. And she had _cared, _which made her even more endearing to me.

Ugh. So much for my grand master plan. So much for being Mr. Rock.

What was I going to do now?

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><p>Snippets-<p>

_That first breakfast was awkwardly awkward. It wasn't just normally awkward, like that meeting with the parents usually is. No, this went to a level far beyond that._

_It started pretty much like this. I was sitting there, calmly eating-and trading smiles with Rapunzel-when her father spoke._

_"Mr. Rider-…."_

_Mr. Rider, my foot. "Actually, you can call me Eugene."_

_"So, _Mr. Ride_r, would you like to share your intentions with us?"_

_"My…what?"_

XXXXXXXXXX

_There she was, her arms wrapped around her knees, sobbing like her heart was breaking. I rushed over to her. "Rapunzel?" I said softly._

_She immediately looked up, eyes filled with tears. I put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey. What's wrong?"_

_Her only response was-if it was possible- to cry even harder. But after a few seconds, she looked up again and threw her arms around me, but she still continued to cry. "I thought you left me," she sobbed. "You _promised_ you wouldn't leave me!"_

XXXXXXXXX

_"So I know now why you acted the way you did," she continued. "But I did know some of it before."_

_I found that hard to believe. "So Sa-…., I mean Gothel told you about it?"_

_She grimaced. "No," she said. "She told me babies came from storks."_

_"You didn't believe her, did you?"_

_"No," she said. She sighed heavily. "Eugene, I may be…innocent, but I'm not stupid."_

_I winced, quite sorry that she had gotten that impression. "Of course you're not."_

Rant: Part of this was written because I hate how some writers make Rapunzel sound like a ditsy airhead because of her naivety in contrast to Eugene's knowing-ness. Come on! She may be innocent, but she's not stupid! She's exceptionally smart! End of my rant.

XXXXXXXXX

_"Ugh," I said. "This grass is so itchy and uncomfortable."_

_She smiled in amusement. "I'm sure it is just devastated that it doesn't meet your requirements."_

_I grinned back. I loved how she could tease me too, and almost match my wit. "Well, it should be. I mean, considering that I'm gracing it with my presence."_

_"Maybe," she said. "It doesn't realize your full importance."_

_"Oh, that's obvious," I told her. "Otherwise it would immediately turn softer."_

_"There is," she said. "You know, always the option of not laying on it. In case it decides to not meet your wishes."_

_I looked at her. "What are you talking about?"_

_A faint blush crept unto her cheeks. "Well…you could put your head here," she gestured to her lap. "It might be more comfortable. But only if you wanted to."_

_I think Rapunzel just hit a new level of cuteness. Because seriously, was there anything cuter than what she had just said? "Hmmm," I pretended to consider it (of course I wasn't serious- why wouldn't I want to put my head in her lap, in the lap of the girl I loved most in the world?). "Well, that might actually meet- even exceed- my expectations."_

_She laughed. "I'm so glad I meet your approval."_

_"Oh, but of course!" I scouted over to her, and rested my head on her lap. She immediately sighed, and started stroking my hair. Which felt awfully nice._

End of snippets-


	9. Rapunzel vs Maximus

AN: Again, I'm sorry it took me so long to post this. I just didn't feel too motivated to write this, and I'm not completely happy with it. But i'm sick of looking at it, so I'm posting it anyway. haha. Anyway, in better news, I definitely will write a sequel to this, and i have like 19 pages of potential scenes. YAY. Thank you for your feedback and feel free to message me with any ideas that you would like to see in it.

I also want to give a huge thank you to my loyal readers. You have no idea how much your feedback means to me! You are part of the reason I keep writing these stories. THANK YOU!

FL 6

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><p><strong>Chapter 9 –Rapunzel vs. Maximus <strong>

"He made the world to be a grassy road before her wandering feet."

-W.B. Yeats

**The **next morning, I woke up to the most annoying, most aggravating wake-up call: Drops of horse spit on my cheek. I cracked an eye open to see who had rudely awakened me. It was that crazy horse again. "Well," I said self-righteously. "I hope you're here to apologize."

Oh, he wasn't in the slightest: he immediately dragged me away by my boot. "AHHHH!" I screeched in protest, as my body dragged on the ground.

Soon I saw Rapunzel bolt up and chase after us. She immediately grabbed my arms and tried to pull me away from that crazy horse. "Give (grunt) me (grunt) him (grunt) back!" she demanded, as she pulled with all her might. And would you believe she succeeded? She managed to get me away from it, though I lost my boot and almost landed on my head when we both fell away from him. Thankfully, I didn't actually land on my head and lose any of my brilliant brain cells.

However, the horse started to chase after us again, not satisfied with having my shoe. Rapunzel immediately bounded up, and attempted to calm Crazy Horse down. "Whoa! Whoa!" she said over and over, bravely putting herself between me and the horse. Finally the horse listened to her. Unbelievable. "That's it," she said sweetly to the horse when he stopped lunging at me. "Now sit," she ordered. What, was Crazy Horse suddenly a dog? I'd never seen any horse obey such a request, and I doubt that I'd see him do it now. He sure hadn't listened to me when I told him to do anything. And I was incredibly persuasive. So I doubted it would be any different for her.

And I was right because he refused to. Ha. I knew it. "Sit," she repeated. That time he reluctantly sat on his haunches. I stared in shock. "_What?"_

"Now drop the boot," she commanded. He shook his head. "_Drop it_."

He dropped it. Rapunzel walked over and started stroking his nose gently, as if he deserved praise or something. In my opinion, he deserved a one-way ticket to horse hell. "Aw, you're such a good boy," she said. Okay, what's another synonym for unbelievable? Because I think I've used up my quota for that word.

Rapunzel continued to pet the horse."You tired from chasing that bad man all over the place?" she asked him.

Bad man? Me? Seriously? Since when was this whole thing _my_ fault? "_Excuse_ me?"

Unreal, now she was _hugging_ the horse. "Nobody appreciates you, do they?" she asked. "Do they?"

Had she lost her mind, or had she forgotten that because of that stupid horse we almost drowned? "He's a bad horse!"

Rapunzel continued to stroke the horse-both with her hand and her words. "Oh, he's nothing but a big sweetheart!"

I felt the berries from yesterday start to come right back up. Sweetheart, my foot. Sweetheart implied that the subject was _sweet,_ not somebody who chased innocent people all across kingdom come. Maybe my initial assumption that she was crazy was true after all….Because how else could she stand that horse?

"Isn't that right?" she said, as she rubbed under his jaw."_Maximus_?"

He started to whicker in complete pleasure. I crossed my arms across my chest in annoyance. "Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me." I couldn't believe that she was being so nice to that stupid horse whose goal in life was to torture me.

"Look," she said to Maximus. "Today is kind of the_ biggest_ day of my life, and the thing is…." She walked over to me and gently pulled me unto my feet. I tried to ignore how much I enjoyed her touching my arm again.

"I need you to _not _get him arrested," she continued. Now she's talking! You tell that horse to say far, far away from me. Forever.

"Just for twenty-four hours!" she said. Oh. That was not even close to forever.

"And then you can chase each other to your heart's content, okay?"It wasn't. I didn't particularly relish the idea of another chase with Crazy Horse here, but I knew I had to agree. It was her birthday after all. I sighed, then stuck my hand for Maximus (_please!)_ to shake.

He just looked away. Apparently this alliance disgusted him as much as me. Well, if I was going to degrade myself he better do it too. _Come on, horse, agree._

"And it's also my birthday," she informed Maximus. "Just so you know." He let out a big sigh, and then reached out his hoof for me to shake. I did, even though I'd much rather not.

However, it was soon clear that he was two-faced, as long as having two horns. As soon as Rapunzel turned her back and walked away from us, the horse kicked me in the side with his hoof. Bloody cheater! I immediately fell to the ground.

"So, Eugene," I heard Rapunzel say. "What should we do…" She turned around, and her eyes instantly took in the scene. She walked back over to us and started stroking his nose again, like he was the one who had gotten some kind of kick in the side. "Now, none of that," she scolded. "You made an agreement, remember? And a magnanimous horse like you _always_ keeps his agreement."

I couldn't resist making a few….sick noises as I stood up. A magnanimous horse! That definition must have changed since I'd learned it. Because I had thought it meant somebody who was generous or gracious. Not somebody who kicked somebody.

Rapunzel only rolled her eyes. "Now, look," she told both of us sternly. "I can't keep my eyes on you every second. But Pascal can, and if you don't behave, I'll tell him to do something to you. And I can guarantee that you won't like it. So, can you please act civil?"

As soon as she said "Pascal" , I felt slighly nervous. I clearly remembered the feel of his tongue in my ear, and I cringed just thinking about it. "Oh, all right!" I agreed. "But Max here started it!"

Her eyes flashed. "I can tell you right now that I don't care who started it, and Pascal won't either," she said. "Now will you please stop this so I can enjoy my birthday?"

Maximus whickered. Her birthday…..I couldn't ruin her special day, not over a fool horse. "Oh, all right!" I said again.

She smiled once more. "Great! So can we go see the capital now, because I've never seen it and I've always…"

I laughed slightly at her enthusiasm. "You know, Blondie, ordinarily I wouldn't say this. But since it's your birthday, we can go see whatever you want."

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "And I'd like to see anything you would like to show me too."

I smirked smugly. "Oh, well, you'll be in for a treat. Flynn Rider haunts all the best spots." Maybe if we would have time I'd show her the Red Dragon, the best pub in Caermoor. Besides that, maybe….maybe it'd make up a little for the Snuggly Duckling. The only thing that the two had in common was that they were both pubs. She smiled as soon as I had smirked again, but I wasn't sure if that was because she liked my smirk or because she was excited about her birthday. Somehow I doubted it was the former; she was too obsessed with those floating lights to start returning my attraction. Besides, the only thing I wanted out of our relationship was my satchel, right?

Right.

Now I just had to convince myself of that.

XXXXXXXXXX

So, I really don't think I could adequately describe to you what happened next. Because I'm not sure how exactly it happened, but somehow Rapunzel's frog managed to get on me. And started licking me all over and sticking his tongue in my ear, and how Rapunzel ignored it for as long as she did …is kind of a miracle.

Of course, I know now that it was the furthest thing from a miracle, but rather that Gothel gave her the satchel the night before, and she told Pascal to torture….I mean, _keep me occupied_ for a few minutes so she could hide it in Maximus' saddlebags. Because she didn't want me to see it, believing Gothel that I would abandon her if I knew that she had it. And she didn't want me to, because she thought I was the most amazing, most wonderful, most handsome, most clever, most charming….man she had ever met. Did you just say I had been the_ only_ man she had ever met? Oh good lord. Why am I wasting all this time on you when you don't even appreciate it? Or me, for that matter? Don't you know that _I'm _the one who brought back _your_ princess?

Ahem. Anyway, I didn't know any of that then. All I knew is that her stupid frog was all over me. So I started to shout over and over "Get-off-me!" And once I saw her, I started shouting "Get-him-off-me!" instead.

She somehow found it all oddly amusing, and started hysterically laughing. "All right, all right, that's enough, Pascal."

I don't mind telling you that I was completely infuriated then. First I had to put up Crazy Horse's antics, and then I had to put up with Freaky Frog. "How can you stand that…that _creature_?" I snarled at her.

She put on her best innocent expression. "What _are _you talking about?" she asked. "Pascal_ never_ acts that way around me."

My eyes still flashed angrily, and being the observant girl that she was, she noticed. "Look, I know you're…not pleased with either of our…uh…animal companions," she said. Animal….companions? Companion implies that there's some kind of understanding or camaraderie between people, and there was absolutely none here. Shouldn't she say animal _pests_? "But can we please walk to the city now?"

I sighed, aggravated. "Fine," I told her. "Capital's this way." She started to follow me agreeably, but I couldn't help vent some of my frustration about both Pascal and Maximus. "Blasted worthless animals!" I muttered hotly. "They don't know their place in life."

XXXXXXXXXX

I know Rapunzel usually says that the walk passed pleasantly for her, but didn't for me. And that's actually fairly true. It takes a lot to get me all riled up, and it takes me a while to cool down sometimes. Such was the case in the whole Pascal/Maximus scenario. I walked in stony silence for most of the time, but once we reached the city, I perked up and started telling Rapunzel all about my successful jobs in the city. Of course, being the sweetheart that she was, she listened patiently, but on the fortieth story, she informed me that it would be "prudent" (her word, of course, not mine. I don't go around using words like "prudent." It's just not prudent to me) to not talk a lot about that, unless I would like to be captured by the guards. "The stories make you….quite conspicuous," she said. "Why don't you be Eugene today?"

Be Eugene today….my foot. I scoffed at her, and began to say something like why would I want to be Eugene when Flynn was so much more dashing. But she cut me off and started making the cutest face. "For me?" she said. "It is my birthday after all." I sighed and reluctantly agreed to be Eugene for the day, even if I wasn't sure what being Eugene meant or entailed.

Shortly thereafter, we crossed over the bridge that led to Caermoor. The bells started to ring, and Rapunzel began to beam the hugest smile and her face clearly expressed all the excitement that she felt. And the thing was? I liked how easily she showed how her feelings, it was nice that what she said so lined up with what she felt- there was nothing two-faced about her. Without waiting for me, she ran into the city, completely overwhelmed with the wonder of the capital that she had never seen before. I began to follow her, but then I caught sight of one of my wanted posters…that still had my nose completely wrong. Figures. I crumpled it up in my hand, because for some stupid reason I didn't want her to see it (which was incredibly moronic of me because she already knew that I was a thief). Maximus stood next to me, and out of revenge, I shoved the poster in his mouth. He immediately spat it out onto my face.

I don't think I can fully express how completely sick that was, and how annoyed I became. So I shoved him in the side. He shoved me back. We would have continued, except Rapunzel's frog reminded us that we had promised to behave. So I gave him one final push and then followed Rapunzel into the city. She looked rapturously at the town, but when she walked further into the city, her hair was stepped on by the crowd. She attempted to bind it all up in her arms, but there was only so much she could carry herself.

Instantly (and without thinking), I rushed to her aid, and scooped up as much hair as I could. I didn't want her to be hurt or her hair either. It was just so pretty…and soft. She stared at me, and I could tell that she was looking to me to figure out some way out of her predicament- because obviously we couldn't carry her hair around all day. Suddenly, I saw four little girls sitting on a fountain, braiding each others hair expertly. Surely they could braid Rapunzel's, right? I whistled. "Hey!" I called to them. "How would you like to braid _seventy_ feet of hair?"

Their eyes lit up. "Oh, we would love to!" the oldest said. Quickly, they say Rapunzel down, and began to braid her hair, and dismissed me brusquely, telling me that they would call me when they were done.

So, I must have sat around for an hour waiting for her, but I tried not to act too bored. Boredom swiftly ended, though, the moment that I saw some of the guards. I immediately ducked, but when I knew I was safe I looked back over at Rapunzel. And felt like I had been hit in the chest by Maximus again. I couldn't help it; she just looked…..simply beautiful. Her hair had been bound up in a long braid that twirled when she spun around, and woven in it was flowers.

She walked over to me, and I tried to stop feeling like somebody had sucked all the air out of my lungs. "So," she asked shyly. "Do you…..like my hair?"

I blinked. I wasn't sure how to respond- it was clear to me that underneath what she was saying was the question do you think I look pretty? And how could I answer that? "Your hair….uh…" She looked more than pretty; she looked beautiful, she looked gorgeous. In fact, she was a vision. She was a princess. "Yes…it's…uh…very nice." _Oh, brilliant. _

Her entire face lit up, as if I had actually said what was I thinking: that I'd never seen a prettier girl than her in all of Corona."Well, thank you," she said. "I don't know about you but I'm a little…hungry? Could we maybe eat….something?"

Food! How could I think about food now? I blinked once, then twice, trying to clear my head of the my crazy thoughts (that went something like this-She looks pretty, she looks _really _pretty, she looks really_ really_ pretty. Yes, it was embarrassing to me that those were my thoughts, because there's nothing particularly witty about them. Honestly, if I had heard somebody of my cleverness thought moronic things like that, I'd probably die laughing). Finally, I managed to think of something else other than the way her hair framed her face perfectly and how the flowers made her look both older and younger at the same time, in the best of ways. "Yes, we could," I told her. "But I'm a little short on money right now. And I told you I wouldn't use my five-finger discount today."

She just looked at me blankly and it was clear she had no idea what I was talking about. I laughed, and whispered "stealing" into her ear. You might wonder at this little exchange, but sure I could have swiped some food for us, but somehow with Rapunzel I couldn't do it. For two reasons really: One, because it was her birthday (somehow grabbing some apple or something for her and saying "here, this is for your birthday" seemed wrong), and two, she wouldn't want me to steal for her. She was just that honest a person.

She blinked."Oh, right," she said. "Well, don't you have any money somewhere else?"

I smirked. Money somewhere else, my foot. She's cute. Naïve, but cute. Of course I had money somewhere else: that was the whole point of me stealing. "Of course I do!"I told her. "I'm Flynn Rid-"

She shoved a hand over my mouth. "Shh!" she said. "Do you want everybody to hear that?" _Why yes, actually, I would like people to know how amazing I am. _"The guards could be on you in a minute!"

And I couldn't outrun them? I faked an expression of repentance, and she moved her hand away. Though she didn't look completely convinced.

"So what were you going to say?" she asked patiently.

I smirked again. "Well," I said. "I was about to say-before I was so _rudely_ interrupted- that I have some money back at my place."

She beamed a smile. "Well, that's stupendous," she said, pleased.

"Buut," I told her. "The guards know where I live, and if I go there, they would be…." I paused, searching for the right words. "Now how did you say it? Oh yes, on me in a minute."

Her shoulders slumped for a minute while I crossed my arms in front of my chest. Then her expression brightened. "Well," she began hesitantly. "If you tell me where to go, I could get it for you." A scheming glint appeared in her eyes, one that I had seen on my own face many times. "I mean….they obviously aren't after me, right?"

"Well, that's true enough," I said. Then I laughed, thinking that I would think she couldn't surprise me anymore and then bam! She did. "You know something? You're all right, Blondie. Sure, I'll show you."

Actually, she was much more than all right- she was completely and utterly unbelievably smart, and beautiful. And wonderful.

Oh, boy. So much for my brilliant "I'm Mr. Rock" plan, right?


	10. Eugene vs the Best Day Ever

AN:So I only listened/watched Kingdom Dance a million times to get this right, haha. I think this whole scene is my Waterloo or something because it wasn't any easier this time around either (though I am more pleased with it this time).

Anyway, I wrote part of this because I noticed that Rapunzel had her hand behind her back when they're hiding from the guards, and I wanted to know why. I want to send a shout-out thank you to RenesmeeXD over at Fanpop, because they've uploaded basically a million screencaps from the movie and it's helped me so much in getting both Eugene and Rapunzel's expressions right.

Much love to all you readers!

FL6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 10- Eugene vs. the Best Day Ever<strong>

"Remember to let her into your heart."

-John Lennon and Paul McCartney

**As** you might have imagined, I gave Rapunzel very specific instructions for retrieving some of my money. I told her that once she was there she had to ask for one woman-Mrs. Jean McIntyre in particular- the one women there that I actually trusted to a) not turn me in to the guards, b) knew my real name, and c) would be kind to Rapunzel. I also told her not to say anything about Flynn Rider at all. Unbelievably, she asked me why, and I answered (almost impatiently) that for heaven's sake, didn't she know by now why I didn't want her to say anything about that. She in turn said that of course she did, and asked me where I hid my money and how much to take. Some days I wish I'd told her to take all of it-considering what might have happened later- but I told her ten silver coins.

We were both pretty quiet after that, and I think might have been having some second thoughts, though I personally wasn't sure why. She would be perfectly safe. Finally we reached the block where my boardinghouse was, and I stopped. Okay, Blondie," I said. "This is as far as I can take you. Just walk three houses down until you reach The Eagle and Crown, okay? I'll wait for you right here, in this alley." Allies, in case you are interested, are perfect places to hide for rogue thieves.

She bore up her shoulders bravely. "Yes." Then she turned around and walked in the direction of the house. I watched her go, and part of me wished that I could go with her instead of sending her alone.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Waiting for her seemed to be an eternity, though it was likely less than an hour. But I must confess to you that I didn't know why it took her so long, because I had only expected it to take her around twenty minutes. Of course what I didn't know then was that she had found the other things (besides my small bag of money)that I had kept under that floorboard-like the cameo I had of my mother, my copy of _The Tales of Flynnigan Rider_-and the letter that she wrote me before she died inside it- and had looked at them, and read the letter.

Since I told you that I'd tell you the story about my father (and my mother), I'll do so now….

Once upon a time….there was a girl named Vivian Lewis, who was as intelligent as she was sweet and beautiful. Okay, so I know what you're thinking: of course you think your mother's gorgeous, she's your mother! But you don't know how lovely she really was: she had the kind of looks that turns men's heads and the kind that makes you feel like you've been kicked in the side with a horse (like Rapunzel actually). She had this thick, wavy brown hair and the biggest, sparkling green eyes (also like Rapunzel). She began to work at the estate of Lord Herbert Seymour as a maid when she was seventeen and everyone there thought she was fantastically beautiful. Unfortunately, Lord Herbert, Duke of the Scums….I mean, _of Somerset_….thought she was pretty too. Do I need to elaborate? Nine months later, I was born and she named me Eugene Fitzherbert-Eugene to remind me that-despite my inauspicious beginnings- I _was_ well-born and Fitzherbert to remind me who my father was. I know, I found that hilariously ironic too…Me, of all people, a _noble_! But frankly, as soon as I learned what my father did, I didn't want to have anything to do with him, and he in turn didn't seem to care much about me either.

That was fine for about the next ten years. Since my mother was only eighteen when she had me, she was tons of fun when she wasn't working and she taught me how to read and write in her spare time. She also had the most vivid imagination and told me stories of fairies and dragons, stories of magic. It might sound odd to you but we were practically inseparable. She loved me dearly despite the fact that the whole matter hadn't been her choice, and constantly told me how thankful she was for me. And I loved her too, and until Rapunzel, she was the only one I had loved truly.

One day when I was about eleven years old, she grew grievously ill with consumption and out of desperation I went to Lord Herbert to ask him to send for a doctor. He answered in turn that he would not, because he couldn't afford the expense. Well, I grew completely infuriated then, considering what he had done to her, and told him off. I said that I couldn't believe he wouldn't help her, it was the least he could do, what kind of noble was he, and I wasn't the bastard here, he was (yes, I had a temper, even then). After that, I stormed out without waiting for his response. That was the last time I talked to my father in at least eleven years. I returned to my mother, took care of her as best I could, but she….died anyway. After that, I was sent to the orphanage and the rest, as they say, is history.

Now, Rapunzel had learned about my father from the letter, but that day I didn't know it because she didn't tell me until three months afterward that she had read it. She told me that she didn't want me to think of her as a snoop, but she read it because she was starting to love me too and wanted to know more about me. Being the sympathetic girl that she was, she felt horrible about what had happened to my mother, though she didn't fully understand all of it.

When Rapunzel returned to me, she looked…..quite upset about something, but I couldn't be sure why. However, she didn't give anything away and simply handed the money over to me. Then she asked me where we should go next. I honestly didn't have much of an opinion, because it was her special day. "Where do you want to go?"

A thoughtful expression entered her eyes. "Well," she answered. "How about we go back to the city square? There's so much to explore there!"

I smiled and agreed.

XXXXXXXXXX

So, we went back to the city square and I soon learned that-when you haven't been outside a tower your entire life_- everything_ excites you. She dragged me from store to store, completely enthralled with everything there.

I have to confess that sometimes I tried to impress her with me as much as all the wonders of the city. After a while, I gave up on trying to impress her, because all she did each time I said something cocky was roll her eyes. Soon I discovered that the thing that would impress her the most was if I _stopped _trying to impress her. Now, of course that was upside down, warped, strange, and out of the ordinary. But I soon learned that everything the world was, Rapunzel usually wasn't: Most girls swooned at my smolder. She didn't. Most girls liked my bravado Flynn Rider act. She didn't, she'd rather that I was myself.

So eventually I dropped my Flynn persona and was …Eugene again. Though even Eugene wasn't big on dancing. When I was in line for our bread, one second Rapunzel was standing beside me, and the next -when I had finished buying our food- she was twirling around the square with first a little boy and then a bunch of others that she had pulled into dancing with her.

I stood there, contentedly watching her, because she looked adorable dancing around the square like that. She gestured to me to come join her, but I was not someone who danced. So I held up my hand, my signal for no, until Maximus shoved pushed me into the square and a woman pulled me into dancing with her. The dancing was….okay, I guess, but it would have been more fun if I could have danced with the one person that I actually wanted to dance with: Rapunzel. But every time we got even close to each other, somebody would carry us off in separate directions. After a while, the dancing died down, we ate the bread and cheese (though we..had to slightly dust it off, because I had dropped it when I had been roped into dancing).

After that, we wandered the square and, at one point in the day, we passed a boy selling small purple flags with the symbol of Corona on it-a golden sun. And when I gave it to her, it was instantly worth it because her eyes started to shine and her face took on its now-familiar exuberance. "Wow!" she exclaimed. "Thank you, Eugene." Her reaction, to be completely honest with you, was priceless and I couldn't help but smile. I soon learned that it didn't take much too much to make her happy, and I found myself wanting to make her happy every minute of that day. I told myself it was because of her birthday. But I think you and I both know that I wanted to see her happy because I was falling for her. Hard.

She held up her flag, and as she did, I couldn't help but place my hand lightly on her back and rest one cheek on her hair. She almost didn't seem to notice though (but she told me later that she did- and liked it) and turned toward me with another big smile. "Eugene," she said. "I have the best idea."

I did too-her cheek was so close that I could easily kiss it. "And what's that?" Somehow I doubted she was thinking the same thing that I was.

"Let's go back to the square," she said. "I'd love to go back and draw something like this flag there."

So, we went back to the square and she drew her large golden sun surrounded by a purple background with people dancing. And that was just another thing that I started to love about her- her artistic ability was amazing. Besides that, she was so happy when she drew and I loved seeing her like that. Rapunzel had started to find herself a place in my heart, and there was really nothing I could do about it. And I found that I didn't _want _to do anything about it either. She was just too wonderful.

In the afternoon, we passed a bakery and I decided to buy something sweet for her to celebrate her birthday. And even though it disgusted me, I enlisted Maximus to distract her while I went in and bought two cupcakes- one with pink frosting (for her of course) and one with yellow. For a second, I thought about how the yellow of the cupcakes was only a few shades lighter than the beautiful sunlight that was her hair. Oh boy, was I far gone (and this is probably a little too much insight on my thought process at that time).

But can I take a minute and just tell you how much I liked her blonde hair? It was the prettiest blonde hair I'd ever seen and shone like the sun every minute that we were outside. It also reminded me that magic golden flower that I had heard stories about, though I doubt the flower could have been prettier than her hair. Okay, I know what you're thinking: please don't make me listen to your poem, Ode to Her Hair. And don't worry, I'm done now. Please don't start believing though that I don't like the way her hair is now, because I do. I love her hair-it's so cute and adorable. Actually, _everything _about Rapunzel is cute and adorable.

Ahem. Anyhow, I walked back to her with the cupcakes behind my back. Rapunzel was petting Maximus again, and he was whickering in pleasure. But when she saw me, she stopped and smiled at me. "Eugene," she said. "Did-…." Then she noticed my hands behind my back. "Why do you have your hands behind your back?"

I smiled at her. She was so endearingly straightforward. "Well, I have a….surprise for you."

Her eyes lit up. "Really? A surprise for…me?"

"Yes," I said. Then I handed her the pink cupcake. "Happy birthday."

Her eyes started to shine now. "Thank you! I've never had a birthday quite so special before."

I hoped that I had something to do with the increase of special-ness of the day, but I didn't say anything like that. "Well, you're eighteen now-it's a notable birthday."

"Yes," she agreed. "What did you do on your eighteenth?"

Ha. She didn't really want to know-the truth was I had been miserable about losing my mother, felt lonely, drunk myself silly, gotten in a fight when somebody insulted my nose, and ended up in jail that night because of it. "Uh….nothing special like this, that's for sure."

"Well," she said thoughtfully. "If I had been there, I would have made sure it was amazingly special for you."

She would have. And if she had been there, she would have listened to me about my mother- and I wouldn't have felt lonely so I wouldn't have drunken myself silly, gotten in a fight, or gone to jail. I wished she had been there. In fact, a part of me wished that she had been around the last ten years. No one could ever feel lonely around somebody as cheerful and sweet as her. And maybe my life would have been different because of knowing her.

But my life was already different because I knew her;_ I_ was different because I knew her. I felt a lump in my throat."Uh," I said again. "….thanks."

Suddenly, I felt a nudge in my back. I turned around only to see Maximus….who was trying to show me that there were guards only a few yards away. Without thinking, I grabbed her hand-that wasn't holding the cupcake-and started to pull her down to the alley at the end of the block.

Immediately a confused look appeared on her face."Eugene….what-?"

"Shh," I whispered, and gestured toward the guards. She saw them, and nodded at me. Then she followed me quietly down toward the alley, though I noticed with a pang that she had taken her hand out of mine. Once we reached the alley, we ducked into it-while guards patrolled the street. It seemed to me that they would unfortunately be here a while. I glanced at Rapunzel, hoping she wasn't scared this time. She didn't look it at all for once, and instead gave me a smile."So seems like we'll be hiding out a while," I whispered.

"Guess so, but I have an idea for a game while we're waiting," she said.

"And what would that be?"

She placed one arm behind her back. "Guess how many fingers I'm holding out."

"Um…two?" I guessed.

"Nope!" she said with a grin.

"Is it…three?"

"Guess again."

"Four?" She shook her head. "Five? One?" She shook her head twice, one for each wrong answer. "Ra-…_Blondie_, it has to be one of those. You only have five fingers."

"Actually," she said. "I have four fingers and a thumb." She laughed triumphantly, and I couldn't help but smile back at her. Her pleasure at outwitting me was too cute. "And I was holding out my thumb. So no fingers. See?" She held out her thumb to illustrate her point.

'Yes," I said. "I see…." _That you are adorable._

XXXXXXXXXXXX

After we ducked from the guards, the day seemed to go by much too quickly. I knew that my time with her was ending, and so I savored every minute of it. One of the last things we did that day was go to the palace's library and archives. Of course, that was Rapunzel's idea because I didn't want to go any closer to the palace than was necessary.

One of the official-looking men came up to us and asked us what we were looking for. I looked at Rapunzel, because there was nothing that I particularly needed to see.

"I would like to see the records…of the nobles," she told him. Instantly I gave her my best "why do you want to see something so boring" look. She wanted to see records of the nobles? Really? Did she suddenly have an urge to take a nap? How could that possibly be interesting to her? Of course (and once again), what I didn't know was that she was looking up my father because she wanted to know more about him, which makes much more sense than what I had thought then: that I didn't understand her sudden interest in genealogy.

"And Eugene here would like to see books about islands," she continued.

The library-keeper briskly showed me to the island section, and then took Rapunzel to the archives. I sighed as soon as he did, and looked half-heartedly at the books. But none of them really interested me, and I thought that even if looking at records would be boring, at least I'd be with Rapunzel instead of standing here by myself. I must have waited there for an hour, but I felt a small thrill when she came back. She greeted me with a small smile.

I smiled back."What do you want to look at now, Blondie?"I asked her.

She thought for a minute. "Well," she began hesitantly. "I would like to look at more of the books here. That is, if you don't mind. I've never seen so many books in my entire life!" I told her that it was fine (or course it was!) and so we spent another two hours in the library. She dashed from aisle to aisle, showing me book after book. I would act excited and she would sit by me, read a little of one, leave it open on the floor, and the she'd go look at another one. I don't think I can fully express how cute this was, but it sort of amazed me that this same behavior would have annoyed me to no end the day before.

One of the last books she brought over to me was a world atlas. We sat on the floor again to look at it, and we sat so close together that our shoulders almost touched. While we looked through it, she asked me what it would be like to see all those places. I told her that I didn't know, because I had never been outside of Corona. She said that she'd really like to go anywhere too, and I thought briefly that it would be the most fun if we could go to those places together.

Of course, Corona had a place in the atlas, and she showed me a little island off the coast. "There's your island," she said, with a half-smile. I just stared at it. _My island_….Did I even still _want_ an island? She glanced at me, and I knew I should say something. "Oh yes," I said. After that, I couldn't really think of much else to say, and I caught all the confused looks that she sent in my direction, though I didn't know what to say to her, because I was so confused myself.

Soon, we finished, left the library, and returned to the city square. Musicians were playing again, and she immediately perked up. So she dragged me into the dancing again, but this time I was determined that I would dance with her. While I danced with the people (again, with everyone, it seemed,_ except_ Rapunzel), I always kept one eye out for her. And as the music ended, I saw her twirling in my direction. Instinctively, I caught her in my arms, one hand clasping hers, the other around her waist. And it felt just as amazing as I always thought it would be. Her hand felt perfect and small inside mine.

She looked up at me with the most beautiful smile. Then suddenly she pulled away, as if she had just realized how close we were and a pink blush rose in her cheeks. She backed away from me, clearly embarrassed. I smiled reassuringly at her, and she smiled back. "Well," I said, trying to make her feel more at ease. "I think it's about that time."

Her eyes started to shine. "You mean….the lights?"

"Yes," I told her. "The lights."

_The lights,_ I thought with another pang. _And those lights that would mark the end of this wonderful day. _


	11. Eugene vs the Dream

AN: So the floating lights scene! I'm actually pretty happy with it, and I hope you guys like it. I just want to say again that I must have listened to/watched I See the Light a million times to get this right, and the screencaps were enormously helpful again. One thing I did notice was that they were only like three inches away from kissing (don't you love zoom?) and it's kind of like EUGENE! Why didn't you kiss her? even though I know why he didn't. And Rapunzel has the cutest freckles on her nose, and I couldn't help but write something about them.

Much love to you readers! You don't know how much your love of this story encourages me. :)

FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 11-Eugene vs. the Dream<strong>

Gold, for the instant, lost its luster in his eyes, for there were countless treasures of the heart which it could never purchase.

-Charles Dickens, _Nicholas Nickleby _

The most precious possession that ever comes to a man in this world is a woman's heart.  
>-Josiah G. Holland<p>

**Throughout** the day, I had pondered where we should watch the lights. Most people would watch the lights from the shore, but somehow that didn't seem to be special enough for her, considering how long she had waited to see them. So I decided I would row her out to the middle of the lake- and give her the best seat in the house. After we finished dancing, I told her to follow me and although she seemed a little surprised, she came along with me willingly to the docks. Once we arrived there, I said that I was going to rent a boat for the two of us and asked her to wait for me. Of course I didn't tell her why I was renting the boat. Come on. If I did, then I wouldn't see that excited expression in her eyes that I was beginning to love. She waited patiently for me to come back after I had rented it.

"All right, Blondie," I said when I returned. "You ready to see the lanterns?"

She smiled. "Yes, but before we go in the boat, can you…uh…do something else for me?"

Something else? Was she hungry again? Well, whatever it was, I had a strong feeling I wouldn't be able to say no. "Yes."

"Can you buy some apples for Maximus?"she asked. "I feel a little bad that he has to stay here and wait for us."

Okay, so I know I hadn't smirked all day, but I couldn't help one then. That was just too odd….and so typical of her "Only you, Blondie, would feel bad for a _horse_," I chuckled. "But sure I'll get some for him. And while I do, you can wait in our boat, okay? It's that one right there."

Since I'm the narrator, and I know everything now- I know why she asked me to do that…kind of strange request. And since I'm a nice narrator, I'll tell you why she asked me that: she asked me to go get apples for Max so she could hide the satchel in the boat, because she wanted to give it back to me, but not until the right moment. So there you go. You're lucky that you have this inside knowledge, because otherwise this would have seemed pretty weird, now wouldn't it?

Anyway, I bought a bag of red apples and came back to her. "You all ready now, Blondie?" I asked her. "I mean, there isn't some other animal I need to buy food for, is there?"

She laughed. "Oh, no, not now," she teased. "But if there is, I'll let you know."

She probably would, and I'd probably say yes again. Oh, man, was I turning into a bumble of mush around her. I smiled as I went into the boat and pushed us off. As I did, I glanced back at Maximus who did look forlorn as he watched us go. Maybe Rapunzel was right about him. I tossed the bag of apples unto the dock. "Hey Max."

He gave me a very skeptical look, like you stole them didn't you. I laughed because for once I hadn't. "What? I _bought_ them!"

He immediately began to gobble them up. I couldn't resist tormenting him. "_Most_ of them."

Rapunzel looked back at me. "Where are we going?"

It was then that I noticed her frog on my shoulder. How he had managed to get there without my noticing was beyond me. I took him off and put him on the rear of the boat. Because, of course, although I would do almost anything for her, there was still a few that I wouldn't: and having her frog touching me was still one of them. "Well," I said. "Best day of your life? I figure you should have a decent seat."

As I rowed us out to the center of the lake, we were both silent But eventually Rapunzel broke the silence. "Can I ask you something?"

I hoped it wouldn't be another question about my mother, but it was her special day and so I couldn't deny her."It's your birthday."

"What do you know about the….lost princess?" she asked.

Okay,_ that_ was not what I was expecting at all- and I wasn't sure how much I could tell her. The only thing I knew about the lost princess….was that she was _lost_, and had been for eighteen years. I didn't even remember what her name was, because she had vanished before her christening (besides that, I had only been four then). I guess I also did know that she was blonde (which wasn't all that common in Corona) and today would be her birthday. "I don't know too much about her," I said. "But I do know that she was taken away by somebody when she was a very young baby. King Ostwalt and Queen Guinevere had their guards search all over the kingdom, but they never found her."

"How awful," she murmured, and I could hear the sadness in her voice. How very like Rapunzel to feel sympathy for our King and Queen. But you know? I felt bad for them too, they were kind people and they had waited so long for their princess- even for her birth. And besides the whole wanting to lock me up in prison thing, I had no complaints. They were good rulers, and had kept Corona in peace ever since their ascension.

"Yeah," I continued. "It is a pretty sad story. But they never lost hope in someday finding their daughter, and they send up your floating lights every year on the princess' birthday, hoping that she'll see them and come back."

"Hmmm," she said thoughtfully.

After that, silence resumed once more between us, but it wasn't a bad silence by any means. In fact, it was almost companionable. She lost herself in her own thoughts, and as she did, I thought about her-and the lost princess as well. Something about the Queen, the lost princess, and Rapunzel, was niggling at my brain, but it was one of those things where you are on the verge of knowing something or remembering something or figuring out something….yet it's just out of your reach. She let out a big sigh. I glanced over at her, and was surprised to see her eyes completely filled with anxiety. What? Wasn't she excited to finally see the lights? Immediately I grew concerned about her. "You okay?"

"I'm terrified," she whispered.

Terrified….well, that's no good. I wanted her to be ecstatically happy. But maybe if she told me, I'd be able to make her feel better. "Why?"

She was quiet a moment, before she answered."I've been looking out of a window for eighteen years, dreaming about what I might feel like when those lights rise in the sky. And now all I can think is what if it isn't all that I dreamed it would be?"

Ah, now I understood. She was scared that the dream she'd cherished for so long wouldn't live up to her expectations. Well, I'd seen the lights at least ten times, and they were beautiful. I was sure it would be just as wonderful as she'd always dreamed. "It will be," I assured her.

She glanced over at me. "And what if it is?" she asked. "What do I do then?"

I thought for a minute. If she lived her floating lights dream, then….I suppose she could go looking for another one. Thought what that would be-when she would likely return to her tower-was beyond me. Still, telling her to chase after another one seemed like a good answer. "Well, that's the good part, I guess," I said with a small smile. "You get to find a new dream."

"Hmmm," she said.

We were both quiet again, and she stared at the water. I glanced down at the bottom of the boat, and noticed a few small flowers there that must have fallen out of her braid. I picked them up, and held them out to her. She took one of them from my hand, and gently put it onto the water. I watched her as she did, but suddenly she scrambled to the rear of the boat and I tumbled head over heels off my seat. It took me a minute to realize (after I rubbed my head for a while and stabilized the boat) that she had caught a glimpse of the first lantern and wanted to see them as best she could.

Then, of course, all the other lanterns started to fill the sky and it was….pretty (watching her excitement at seeing them captivated me more though). But I have to admit to you that there was only two that concerned me. While I had rented the boat, I had also picked up two lanterns of my own, and I was going to give them to her so she could send one up herself. So I lit them and held them out to her when she looked back at me after watching the lights. I smiled at her and she sat back down across from me.

"I have something for you too," she said. Something for me? Really? Honestly, I had no idea what it could be, which I guess in hindsight was kind of stupid of me, because there was really only one thing that it could be. She offered something out to me and it ended up being my satchel, the satchel with the crown, the crown that would have given me the means to fulfill my dream. The crown that had once meant everything in the world to me.

I stared at it, and all I could think was I had completely forgotten about it. Because I didn't want it.

_"_I should have given it to you sooner," she continued. "But I was scared. And the thing is, I'm not scared anymore. You know what I mean?"

I pushed the satchel away. "I'm starting to."

As soon as I had, a huge smile spread across her face. I gently handed one of the lanterns out to her and we both sent ours up together.

Then I started to think about what I had done: I had basically just told her that I didn't want the satchel, which was true because I didn't. I didn't want the crown either. Because the more I thought about my island dream, the more I thought I was an idiot. It was as if I'd been blind for ten years, and now I was seeing what a complete moron I was. What had I been _thinking_? Alone, surrounded by _money?_ Really? Money was just a thing, and it was as my mother always used to tell me-things can never replace people. How could money compare to what I had found with Rapunzel? Money couldn't talk to me, money couldn't see my innermost secrets and still care about me anyway, money couldn't laugh with me, money couldn't smile at me, or make my heart soar. And money couldn't encourage me to be Eugene, to be the person I was with my mother again. It was just a thing- a cold, callous, lifeless thing, an unfeeling thing that would never bring the happiness that I thought it would.

Actually, chasing down money as my lifelong dream was probably one of the stupidest things I had ever done. I had thought that being Flynn Rider would make me special. But truthfully? All it had given me was a bunch of wasted years with a couple of chases and prison visits thrown in the mix. And it hadn't brought me what I had thought it would. In reality, money couldn't make me important or somebody. And I decided then that being Eugene Fitzherbert was okay, because he _was_ somebody to someone: Rapunzel. And that's really all that mattered.

As I watched Rapunzel stare happily at the lights, my own words came back to me: _you get to find a new dream_. I soon realized that I had: Rapunzel. Was there any girl out there that would better than her? She was everything that you would want in a girl. In fact, she was one of those girls that you always dreamed of, but convinced yourself didn't actually exist. But she did exist, and she was here, next to me, like we were supposed to be here together. There was nowhere else I'd rather be either. In that instant, I knew I was more than half in love with her-because no girl that I could ever even imagine would be better than Rapunzel, and nothing in the world would make me happier than being with her. She was more beautiful than any island ever would be, more valuable than any crown ever could be. S_he _meant everything to me.

And it was about time she knew it. As gently as I could, I reached for her hand. She turned toward me, a surprised look in her eyes, but she let me take her other one. I took a deep breath-what to say? "Rapunzel, I-…" …._think you're amazing, beautiful and wonderful, think that I can't live anymore without you, think I'm in_ love_ with you. _

"Say it again," she whispered.

"What?" Had I actually said all that out loud?

"My name," she said quietly. "Say it again."

Ah, so she'd noticed that wall I'd created before by calling her Blondie, and that same wall had come down now that I'd called her by her name, her beautiful name. I smiled at her. "Rapunzel."

"Again," she said as a happy smile spread across her face.

"Rapunzel," I repeated. I began to draw her hands even closer to me, overwhelmed with the desire to kiss her. However, I wasn't going to do it unless she wanted me to, even welcomed it. I had taken advantage of her sweet nature long enough, and I was determined that I would never do it again.

But when she gazed at me then, all I could see was…affection for me (how is that possible? I know I act all cocky a lot of the time, but the thought of this amazingly kind and wonderful girl…caring for _me_ was slightly surprising to me) in her eyes and excitement- a little nervous, maybe, but still excited. But the thing that got me the most was the profound innocence she had, and trust- like she knew that I would never do anything to hurt her. Which I wouldn't.

Still, I felt the slightest twinge of hesitation. If I did kiss her, it would change everything between us and she and I both knew it. She wasn't one of those girls who you'd kiss and then just walk away-like it didn't mean much to either of you. No, she was a girl who would only kiss a man if she cared about him, if it meant something special to her. So if I did kiss her, it would be…..like a sign that I wanted to be with her, and our deal meant nothing (which it didn't. Why would you want a crown when you could be with Rapunzel?). Besides that, this would be her first kiss; I could tell from the look in her eyes, and I wanted to make sure it was something she would always remember. Well, when in doubt, I went back to Flynnigan's old standby: touch her face somehow, and if she seemed okay, you kiss her.

So I reached out and gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Rapunzel." She smiled slightly again, so I gradually started to bring her face even closer to mine. As I did I could see every single freckle on her nose. Were all freckles that cute, or was it just Rapunzel's? Her eyes drifted shut, as if she couldn't wait for me to kiss her. Well, that would make two of us.

However, before my own eyes could do the same, I noticed something on shore.

Something that wasn't good.


	12. Eugene vs Jail

AN: So this isn't what I intended for this chapter, but when I started writing this I kind of had this idea and I just went with it. From what I can guess, there's about 8 hours between when Eugene's arrest and his (almost) hanging, and I tried to fill in the gaps.

**Kay-Dee**: Here's what he saw :)

**Delilahgirl: **I know, I wish they kissed too, but while I embellish, I don't change the main plot of the movie. So no kiss :( I'm very glad you like it though.

**Over the Weather: **It IS hard to write it without just copying the song, but I tried to capture each line's main idea in his thoughts. Thank you for the compliment :)

**MFMF: **Haha, well here's another cliffie :) But thank you. I'm very glad that you like my stories.

**DJChef7: **Thanks! I'm glad you like it :)

**CrystalIceFire: **Thank you!

You readers/reviewers are amazing! Much much love to you.

FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 12- Eugene vs. Jail<strong>

"The greatest griefs are those we cause ourselves."

-Sophocles

**Okay, **so here's how that whole scene should have gone: I gradually bring Rapunzel's face closer to mine, count every single cute freckle on her nose, and her eyes drift shut. Then...I kiss her-one sweet gentle kiss. When we break apart, she smiles at me, loving our kiss as much as I did. "Eugene," she'd say, and I'd be happy-because when she says Eugene, it sounds better than anything. Then I'd tell her how much I care about her and she'd say she felt the same. And we'd live happily ever after.

That's what _should_ have happened.

Here's what _did _happen: Instead of bringing my face to Rapunzel's and kissing her, I pulled away because I noticed a greenish glow on shore. My first mistake-I should have kissed her. And from what I could tell, it was a lantern- and it was held by one of the Stabbingtons. By the expression on their faces, they had seen me and they didn't look happy. Okay, now _this_ was very bad. For a second I kept staring at the shore at them, completely forgetting about Rapunzel until she said something.

"Is everything…okay?" she asked tentatively.

I blinked, completely distracted. "Huh?" Then what she said registered in my consciousness. Was everything okay? No, it wasn't, but I didn't want to scare her. "Oh yes," I said, hoping I sounded convincing, and squeezed her hand. "Yes, of course." My mind scrambled frantically for some kind of plan and my gaze settle on the satchel next to her. "I just...uh…need to…row back to shore." My second mistake-I should have rowed the complete opposite direction.

As I brought us back to shore, I could feel Rapunzel's eyes on me, questioningly. Of course, she was too smart to believe that everything was just dandy, but I didn't know what I could tell her. Once we reached the other side, I jumped out and pulled the boat unto the shore. "I'm sorry," I said, trying to reassure her as best as I could that everything was okay-even if it wasn't in reality. "Everything is fine." I picked up the satchel, but I couldn't help but notice how her face changed from slightly nervous (despite my best efforts) to completely crestfallen. Why? Did she think I was going to run off and leave her? "There's just something I need to take care of."

"Okay," she said. She was being awfully brave about this, but I was starting to be able to imagine how this looked to her. _Please trust me, Rapunzel._ "I'll be right back."

As I walked over to the Stabbingtons, I tried to figure out what to do. Obviously, I would give the crown to them. I didn't want it, not anymore, and they did. Besides, the crown was what they were after anyway, don't you think? I mean, if I gave it to them, they'd leave both me-and Rapunzel-alone, right?

Right. So, after I gave them the crown, I would walk back to Rapunzel and…..give her that kiss that we had missed on the boat. And after that I would….tell her how I felt about her, and…

….And ask her to come away with me: to leave Corona and make a new life-with me- in the nearest country over (which was probably Screlandria).

Yes, the more I thought about the idea, the more I liked it- me and Rapunzel, together, forever, with no one chasing us or trying to break us apart. I would make sure to assure her that I would never, ever, tell anyone about her hair, and she could trust me to keep her safe. I would even…..even marry her proper-like if she wanted me to. I just wanted to be with her, and have her happy.

That was the new plan. I walked over to the Stabbingtons with quick strides, wanting to finish this, so I could return to her. As stupid as it sounds, I think I thought that if I gave them the satchel they would leave me alone. My third mistake. I should have known better than that.

Once I reached Thor, who was sitting on a boulder, sharpening something with his knife. I assumed my traditional blithe tone. "Ah, there you are," I said. "I've been searching everywhere for you guys since we got separated." Ha, now_ that_ was a complete lie. I decided compliments might make this easier. Everyone likes a compliment right? "The side-burns are coming in nice, huh? Gotta be excited about that. "

Thor didn't respond to that, which should have been my first clue that all was not right. "Anyhow, just wanted to say I shouldn't have split, the crown is all yours," I said, and then tossed the satchel in his direction. I started to walk away. My gut feeling was that I needed to get out of there. Fast. Finally, something that wasn't actually a mistake of mine. See, that was actually smart of me. "I'll miss you, but I think it's for the…." I walked into a very intense looking Morris. "….best."

"Holding out on us again, eh, Rider?" Thor said.

For once I had no idea what he was talking about. I looked back at him. "What?"

"We heard you found something," he said, as he stood up and walked toward me, and thrust down his knife. "Something much more valuable than a crown."

I found something? The only thing I had found was…the most wonderful girl in the world. Who just so happened to have magical glowing and healing hair. Suddenly a cold feeling of dread came over me.

And it was confirmed by the next words out of his mouth. "We want her….instead."

Okay, it was official. The Stabbingtons had hit a new low. Now, don't look at me like that. I would never, ever do what they were thinking of. I wouldn't hurt someone and imprison them…or use them for money. I mean, I was bad….but I wasn't _bad_. Meaning I wasn't pure evil. And I would never, ever willingly let the Stabbingtons do that to Rapunzel. "No, I won't let you," I told him firmly. "If you want her, you know you have to go through me first."

He smiled. "That can be arranged."

Suddenly something hit me hard and, for the fourth time in two days, I blacked out. I guess that was my fourth mistake, but I don't know how I could have prevented that.

XXXXXXXXX

When I groggily woke up, I'm sure you can imagine what the first thing that I thought was. No, it wasn't that I was bummed that I had been knocked out for the fourth time. Honestly. No, it was Rapunzel. "Rapunzel?" I said, thinking that I was still on the boat with her.

Which was actually smart of me, considering I was actually on a boat-just not with her. Instead, I was completely tied to a post, my hands tied to the steering wheel, and tied to my hands was the crown. But there was no sign of Rapunzel. Suddenly everything with the Stabbingtons came back to me, and I realized that if they had knocked me out, she must be with them. "Rapunzel!"

So, things are pretty bad here, right? Well, they're about to get even worse. See, guards had seen with the crown and immediately started to arrest me and drag me away. "No, no, wait, guys, guys," I pleaded. But they didn't listen to me, and instead forced my hands behind my back and cuffed them. As they did, I fought them, desperate to find Rapunzel. "Rapunzel!" I yelled over and over, until one of the brusquely slapped me and told me to shut up. Aren't guards the nicest fellows?

Not. They didn't seem to care at all that she was in danger and I was the only one who could help her. They pulled me into the prison, and locked me up in jail.

XXXXXXXXXX

I hate jail. Just thought I'd throw that out there. I guess that's not surprising to you considering all the stories you've heard about me successfully trying to _avoid _jail. I hate every single minute I've ever spent in jail, but when I look back at that night in jail, I hate jail even more.

You might wonder why that night in jail was especially bad. Or maybe you don't, but I have to explain it to you to continue this story. See, that night in jail was really…..well, there's really no other word for it….absolute hell. This was for several reasons: First, I was troubled, worried, no _vexed_ about Rapunzel. What? You're surprised that I thought of her first? Really? Haven't I told you enough by now how completely crazy I was about her? Part of me knew that she would have wondered why I hadn't come back and maybe...maybe she thought I had run off and left her- and just toyed with her emotions. After all, I had told her I would be right back. And I hadn't ever returned. I was no one's fool and the Stabbingtons might have lied to her when she asked what had happened to me. They might have told her anything, like I had told them about her hair- and then she would hate me. I couldn't stand that thought.

Besides that, for all I knew Rapunzel was tied up somewhere being dragged away to be sold as some kind of healing slave by the Stabbingtons. The thought of Rapunzel- sweet, sweet, innocent Rapunzel, Rapunzel who was so kind to everyone, Rapunzel who had been already imprisoned for her whole life- doomed to that fate made me sick. Not like sick in the sense that I have a small stomach ache but if I take some herb it will be better. No, I mean sick as in I can't stop pacing because I have so much stabbing pains that if I stand still it will hurt more.

And the thing was I couldn't do a bloody thing about it (another reason why I hate jail- it was the thing that kept me from helping her.) I was locked in jail and I didn't know when- or if- I would ever get out. There was enough evidence against me for at least lifetime imprisonment, and as much as I hated the idea, they could execute me too. As I'm sure I don't need to tell you I didn't want to die. I wanted to live to marry Rapunzel, be with her, and be her Eugene, and I couldn't do it if I was dead. And I couldn't save her from the Stabbingtons if I was dead.

I couldn't help but blame myself for her predicament too, and this isn't your normal blaming yourself for forgetting something important or losing something. This goes to a level far beyond that. Rapunzel's very life seemed to be on the line, and I was the one who had made it happen because the Stabbingtons were my partners. But I didn't know how the Stabbingtons had found out about her. I sure hadn't told anybody, and I was serious when I said earlier that I wouldn't ever tell anyone about her hair. It was a piece of the puzzle that didn't seem to fit, and I would think over and over how did they know, how did they know.

At one point, I felt myself drift into-what my mother always called- the Land of If Only….If only I had not seen the Stabbingtons and just kissed Rapunzel, if only I hadn't let them knock me out, if only I hadn't been captured by the guards, if only I wasn't in prison…Rapunzel would be okay.

So generally this is how my mind worked that night, with only minor variations here and there. But I kept berating myself over and over for the mess I was in, and had unwillingly brought Rapunzel into along with me.

At one point during the night, I overheard two guards talking about me:

"So, Irwin, I hear you caught Flynn Rider tonight. You must be pleased."

"Thanks, Luke. I am."

"How'd it happen?"

"It was actually kind of strange. We were just standing there, patrolling, when we saw him on this boat. Of course, we immediately nabbed him."

"Did he fight you?"

"Of course! It was four against one, though, so he didn't have much of a shot. But you know what was odd?"

"What?"

"As we got him, he kept yelling this one girl's name. At least, I thought it was a girl's name. It also sounded like some kind of flower, but I can't remember what it was."

"Lily?"

"No…."

"Orchid? Lilac? Rose?"

"No, it was not that common of a flower."

"Uh…Rapunzel?"

"Yeah, that's it. He kept yelling for some girl named Rapunzel. And he sounded almost panicked about her."

"Weird."

"I know, right?"

Another silence.

"So, is it true what I'd heard about him?"

"Which is…."

"That he's an arrogant smart-aleck?"

"I don't know; he didn't act like that. In fact, since he's been here he's been really quiet. Except for his non-stop pacing, that is."

"His…non-stop _pacing_?"

"Yeah. Go take a look."

Shuffle of feet. More shuffling of feet. "You're right."

"I know!"

"What do you think is up with him?"

"Who knows. Maybe he's worried that the Captain will get an execution warrant tonight."

"Or maybe he's worried about Mystery Girl Rapunzel."

Silence.

"I bet she's pretty, whoever she is." Luke sounded wistful.

"Of course she is, you idiot. You think he'd settle for anything less?"

"No, I guess not. After all, he does have the looks that turn girls' heads. Though his nose isn't at all like the wanted posters."

I almost grinned at that. Thanks, Luke.

"You know, my sister actually met him once." Luke's voice again.

"Really?"

"Yeah, my aunt and uncle own the Red Dragon, and my sister helps out sometimes. She said that one day he came in for a glass of flip."

"Was he arrogant?"

"Actually, she said he wasn't. In fact, she told me that he seemed sad about something and besides a polite thank you, he barely said anything."

"But she didn't report him?"

"No, she said….she said she felt sorry for him. So she didn't."

"Huh…Well, if it were me…."

Their voices faded out after that. But later they came back again. "Luke!" Irwin bellowed.

Shuffling of feet. "Yes?"

"We need-…." A brief pause. "Why are you looking like that?"

A sigh. "I don't know, I'm kind of curious about Mystery Girl."

Huffing of breath. "Well, if you're that curious, why don't you just ask him?"

"Ask _him_? Ask Flynn Rider?"

"_Yes_. What's he gonna do? Bite you through the bars?" He snorted. "You scared of him or something?"

"No. It's just that…why would he answer me?"

"Ah, no, I'm thinking he'd be thinking more along the lines of why do you care. In fact, I'm wondering the same thing myself."

For the first time, Luke actually sounded annoyed. "Look," he said. "I've got sisters, okay? And so I'm just thinking that if Mystery Girl was _my_ sister, I'd do everything I can to make sure she's all right. Maybe I can….check up on her somehow, just to ease his mind."

Another snort. "You care way too much. Fine. But when you're done, we have two more prisoners that we could use your help with."

"I'll be right there." Then I heard shuffling of feet, and a quiet "Mr. Rider?" That was actually the first time somebody had addressed me that politely. Usually they called me "Rider", or "Hey You", or my personal favorite "Convict"-as if just because I was jail I suddenly stopped being a person. I was starting to like this Luke. I walked over. "Yes?"

"I-I couldn't help but notice that you're anxious about some girl…Rapunzel, is it?" he said. "And I thought I'd tell you that if I can, I'll do some checking up on her, just to…I don't know, ease your mind." His voice lowered. "And to let you know that _some_ of us here still have a heart."

"Thanks," I said. "But I don't think there's really anything you can do. She's…she's probably long gone from Caermoor by now."

His face fell. "Oh, I'm sorry. What do you think happened to her?"

"Uh….she's most likely in the hands of two criminals." I decided not to comment on the profound irony of that-considering that_ I_ was a criminal myself.

He whistled. "Wow, no wonder you're worried. I'm sorry about that."

"Thanks."

"So you care about this Rapunzel?"

Although Luke was nice and everything, I didn't really want to spill my heart to him. "Yes," I said simply.

"Is she…," he asked hesitantly. "Is she pretty?"

I couldn't help but smile slightly at that. "She's probably the prettiest girl I've ever seen."

His eyes were dreamy. "Wow, that's nice. Too bad you're in jail, huh, otherwise you could go off and be with her." Now from anybody else in any other tone it would have been a taunt, but I had a feeling that he was trying to sympathize with me. Besides, Luke wasn't the taunting type. He just wasn't. Irwin was. He blinked. "Well, I'd best go help Irwin before…"

…before Irwin blows up at him for being late. "Go ahead."

He blinked again. "Right," he said, then started to walk away but not before I head a soft "Hang in there, Mr. Rider, and hope for the best."

Okay, where did this Luke come from and why was he working in a jail? He was way, _way_ too nice for this job.

XXXXXXXXXX

Around two hours later- and about a hundred paces of my cell's perimeter- I heard Luke and Irwin come back. "Now you know what to do," coached Irwin.

"Yes," said Luke, then he walked over to my cell again. "Hello again, Mr. Rider." Irwin nudged him, though I did notice how he looked despisingly at Luke when he said Mr. Rider. "I need you to come with me for questioning."

"Uh…sure," I said. Oh, stupendous. Now I had to go through questioning. Isn't jail fun? At least it was Luke who was taking me- he was the only one here who didn't make me want to bash my head against the wall.

"Right," he said, and opened the door.

Irwin nudged him again. "Aren't you going to put the cuffs on him?" he asked in a low voice.

Luke glanced at me. "No, I don't think that's necessary. He won't be any trouble."

Maybe now I wouldn't, but two days ago I would have been. Irwin looked incredulously at Luke. "You're kidding, right? You do know who you're dealing with, don't you?"

Luke looked evenly at Irwin. "Yes," he said. "I'm dealing with a human being."

"But he's Flynn Rider!" Irwin protested. "He's probably planning something right-…"

Enough of this. "Look," I interrupted him. "If I was going to do something, I would have done it already-like bashing your heads together while you've been yakking. So can we go now?"

If my eyes weren't deceiving me, Luke was smirking at Irwin, rather smugly in fact. "Sure," he said. "Let's go."

Irwin grumbled the entire time, but he grumbled even more when Luke told him that he was going to question me by himself. "But you can't!" he complained. "You know what the Captain said!"

"I am quite aware of what the Captain said," Luke told him firmly. "But I'm the only one here who will treat him fairly. So I'm going to talk to him, and you are going to stay here. Got it?"

I almost grinned in spite of myself. Luke was the _man_! Irwin mumbled something again, but he agreed- as long as he could guard the door. Then Luke ushered me into a small room, and told me to sit across from him.

As soon as I did, he cleared his throat. "Right," he said. "So, Mr. Rider, I'm going to ask you a series of questions and I'd strongly encourage you to answer honestly. All right?"

"O…kay," I said. He asked me about a bunch of my other thefts, writing things down on a piece of paper periodically, but finally he got to the big one.

"So, Mr. Rider," Luke said. "I have to ask you about the lost princess's crown."

"Yes?" I decided there was no real point in lying, considering that a guard had seen me do it. Once again, I berated myself for my utter stupidity. Why did I have to open my big mouth anyway? "And?"

"You stole it, didn't you?" Luke wasn't one to dance around matters.

I leaned back in my chair. "You caught me with it, a guard saw me do it. So yes."

"Did you act alone?"

Generally, I wouldn't rat out my partners, but maybe if I did they'd catch the Stabs…and Rapunzel would be rescued. "No. Morris and Thor Stabbington helped me."

He looked up at me sharply, but then he looked down and scribbled something. "I see." He wrote something else. "And why did you want to steal the crown? I'm guessing it was your idea."

He was right about that. I had pretty much engineered the entire thing, given that I was smarter than the Stabbingtons. But I didn't answer that part of his statement. "I wanted to steal the crown, sell it, and….and buy an island."

"I see," Luke repeated. Then he cleared his throat again. "Tell me something, Mr. Rider. Do you still want that island?"

Now that was the easiest question he had asked me. "No." The only thing I wanted right now was to make sure Rapunzel was safe.

"Why not?"

"I….I just don't."

He wrote something down again. "Are you sorry?"

Was I sorry? Really? "Am I sorry I stole it or am I sorry I was caught?"

"Both. Either," he said. "It might help you if you are genuinely sorry."

"Well," I said. "I'm sorry that I stole it, but if I hadn't, I wouldn't have met…uh…"

"Rapunzel?"

"Yes."

"And because of her you don't want that island."

This Luke was something else. Actually, he was ridiculously clever. A lot like Rapunzel really. Would everything always remind me of her? "Yes."

"Must be one special girl," he commented.

"She…she is."

"Off the record," Luke said. "I wish there was some way you could see her before-…" He broke off, almost like he thought he was saying too much. "I think we're about finished here. Thank you for your cooperation."

"Sure," I said. "Now can I ask _you_ something?"

"Go ahead."

"Why are you being so kind to me?"

He was silent for a minute. "Honestly," he said. "I know that professionally I shouldn't be, and I should hate you-like everyone else here- for all the crimes you've done. But personally…well, my sister said that when she saw you once, she saw…saw some kind of sadness in you, and I can see it too. Besides that, I don't know. My mother always told me that everyone deserves respect, no matter what."

So that was nice and everything, but from my experience in jails, _nobody_ thought that way. They seemed to think that just because you had done something bad, it was okay to treat you like dirt. I'd even heard of guards beating up prisoners, but luckily they hadn't done anything like that to me. So far, that is. "With all due respect, Mr.-…."

"Miller," he supplied.

"….Miller, why are you working here?" I said. "This job doesn't seem…to suit you that well."

He sighed, as if he had heard this question many times before. "Well," he said. "Off the record, I only work this job because I need the money. My father's gone, and my mother relies on me to pay most of the bills- and my two sisters' dowries."

Well, that made more sense. "I see."

Luke stood up. "Right," he said. "So I need to take you back to your cell now."

I stood up too. "And what's your prediction for me?"

He shook his head gravely, and looked at his notes. "I'll be frank with you, Mr. Rider. Things don't bode well for you at all. I'll do what I can with the….encouraging things you've told me, but most people here would love to see you strung up by a noose as soon as possible."

I sighed. "I figured."

XXXXXXXXXXX

After that, I went back to my cell and resumed my pacing, worrying, and blaming. By daybreak, my head ached because of my many hours of circular thinking and berating of myself. Soon I heard my cell door open. I glanced back, only to see a smug-looking Irwin, the Captain, and one other guard. Seeing Irwin smug didn't improve my mood any. In fact, if he was that happy, chances were things were…very bad for me.

"Let's get this over with, Rider," the Captain said.

"Where are we going?" I asked. He just looked at me, and I began to feel slightly sick. Unconsciously, my hand strayed to my neck. "Oh."

See, in that moment I knew what my fate was:

And it was the end of a noose.


	13. Eugene vs the Noose

**AN: **Sorry this took so long, but part of me didn't really want to write this because he thinks he's going te die and it's depressing. it's not fun to write, and neither will the next two chapters (because then he actually DOES die), but don't worry. I'm still going to finish this. :)

**Over the Weather: **Well, here you are! mentioned again. :) I'm trying to respond to every review personally, just to let you all know how much I really do appreciate you reading and reviewing...and well, caring about this story. It's amazing. Thank you**!**

**Crystalicefire- **Thank you. It wasn't easy to write, and so I'm glad it was both sad and suspenseful. YAY

**Kaydee-** Thanks! I called it Eugene vs. the Noose, but I like your suggestion too.

**Delilahgirl- **He is. He really is. He really REALLY is. Is it possible to write him so much and not love him? I don't think so, because I do. And I promise that I will never kill him, except in this story because I have to, just to keep the plot of the movie. Thank you for saying that you wish they'd put my scenes in the movie. That's so sweet. :) Oh, and I love your idea for the story, and I've actually written snippets of it just because I love the idea so much. I might write that story out for you, just because I LOVE the idea so much**. **

**EmilySnow-**I know! She's brilliant really, and while she's innocent, there's a huge difference between the too. i'm glad you liked the snippets :)

Much love to you readers!

FL6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 13-Eugene vs. the Noose<strong>

No life that breathes with human breath

Has ever truly long'd for death.

-Alfred Tennyson, _The Two Voices_

**You **know, I have to admit to you that you're a pretty smart listener. So I'm pretty sure you know what I'll tell you next:

Yes, you're right, I didn't want to die. Does that surprise you? Because it really shouldn't, considering that I told you in the last chapter that I didn't want to die. Does anyone _ever_ want to die, especially if they were going to be executed? Of course not. But I really, really didn't want to die, considering I was madly in love with Rapunzel and wanted to be with her. A future with her was something that I had dreamed about that night, when I wasn't pacing, blaming, and berating myself. I wanted to get out of here and be with her, but more than that I wanted to save her from the Stabbingtons and be her hero. I didn't want to be hung that day, not then, not ever truth be told.

As much as I wanted to _not _die, I also knew I deserved this. I had stolen too much, lied to too many people to say that I didn't. Besides that, I had known the risks when I started a life of thievery- there was always the possibility of getting captured, and having something like this happen. When I had told Rapunzel about why I became Flynn Rider, I had felt like an idiot, but I felt like an even bigger one then- because the thing that I thought would make life better didn't. In fact, it had doomed me and cost me life. Isn't it ironic that the thing that I had thought might give me recognition proved to be the complete opposite? After I died, I would eventually be just one more thief who was stupid enough to get caught and executed.

Even though I knew I deserved this, I didn't want it. Death was something completely unknown and I wasn't thrilled about finding out what it was. I remembered that my mother had told me-as she lay dying- that she wasn't scared of death, because there was nothing in it to be afraid of. But she believed in God and heaven. I wasn't sure I believed in either. _Well,_ I thought ruefully, _I guess I'm about to find out_. I wondered if death by hanging would be painful and if it would be better or worse than death by drowning. It did occur to me that this was the second near-death experience I'd had in the past three days, except I was a hundred percent sure the outcome would be different. And of course there was no Rapunzel here to save me, or her magic hair to heal me. This was an experience I'd have to face alone.

My mind always traveled back to Rapunzel, realizing as I walked to my doom, my hands cuffed behind me, that I would never see her again. Never hear her call me Eugene, never see her smile, never hear her laugh. I'd die without her knowing how I really felt about her. And I'd die without seeing her safe. I think that was the thing that tormented me the most, and maybe, just maybe, if I knew she was okay, it would be easier to do this.

It didn't help that I could feel Irwin's (and the rest of the guards') smugness. It was obvious to me that they couldn't wait to see the demise of their foe, Flynn Rider. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if they broke out the beer after and had a toast all around .Well, except for Luke, that is. Somehow I doubted he would act like that. So at least there was one humane person here.

But that didn't mean he'd be completely sad. Once I was dead, only one person might grieve, and that was if she didn't completely hate me for what I had "did" and the Stabbingtons had somehow told her.

Speaking of the Stabbingtons, I glanced around and caught a glimpse of them in the cells. And I grew a little angry then. Okay, fine. I didn't get a little angry, I got _really_ angry. Happy now? But can you blame me? They were going to turn Rapunzel into some healing slave! Was there any way I wouldn't be angry about that? Anyway, I was so overcome with rage at them for what they did, that I shoved the two guards (and felt slight bit of pleasure at shoving Irwin) and jumped so my cuffs were now in front of me.

Then I grabbed Thor by his collar and pulled him toward me. Remember how I told you that you don't want to see me mad? Because it's not pretty? Ahem. Exhibit A. "How did you know about her?" I demanded angrily. His eyes widened, as if he thought I'd hit him or something (though that was pretty much impossible with the cuffs). I think that had been the first- and only- time I had actually seen Thor scared. **(AN: I just have to interject something here- that if Eugene looked at me the way he looks at Thor, I'd be pretty freakin' scared too. I've seen the screencap of this part, and boy that is one fierce looking face. Anyway. Carry on). **That should let you know how intimidating I can be when I'm irrevocably furious about something. "Tell me now!"

"It wasn't us," he finally managed to say. "It was the old lady."

"Old lady…" I repeated dumbly. Old lady? What old lady? Oh, no, no, no, no….the only person besides me who knew about Rapunzel's hair….was her mother. And if her mother had told the Stabbingtons, then she couldn't be who Rapunzel thought she was. She must be up to something…something bad. No real mother would _ever_ do that to her daughter. The guards started to drag me away, but I fought them with everything in me. "No, wait. Wait!" I pulled away from them again. "You don't understand. She's in trouble! Wait!"

Previously I had walked…fairly docilely to my fate (not that I was happy about it, mind you. How could I be?), but now I fought them ever step of the way. They practically had to drag me down the hall. As they pushed me down the hallway (still unwillingly, but really there's only so much fighting I could do with handcuffs on), I caught a glimpse of the gallows through one of the windows, and I knew deep down that this was for real. They were really going to hang me, and there would be no escape for me, no chance to help Rapunzel. _I'm sorry, Rapunzel_, I thought. _I'm so, so sorry. I'm sorry I'm going to die without telling you how I feel about you, without rescuing you….._

As we walked down the hall-okay, as they shoved me down the hall, I saw something in one of the alcoves. Was that…was that a tiny unicorn? The only time I had seen a unicorn like that was at the Snuggly Duckling. Suddenly the door in front of us slammed shut, followed by the ones behind us. What?

It was clear that Irwin, Other Guard, and the Captain were as bewildered as I was. Though a tiny, tiny speck of hope was rising in me. Was it possible that somebody was trying to help me?

"What's this? Open up!" the Captain demanded, banging on the door.

The window opened and I could see the tiny man from the Snuggly Duckling. "What's the password?" he asked blithely.

The Captain looked incredulous. "What?"

He laughed a little."Nope."

"Open this door!" he commanded.

"Not even close," he said.

"You have three seconds," the Captain informed him. I just want to point out something about the Captain- that he is _not_ a patient man. I can begrudgingly say that he is a capable Captain, but he was _not _patient. Three seconds? Really? "One..."

While he was counting, a hook took Other Guard away. Then somebody grabbed Irwin. I couldn't say that I was too sad about that. "Two…"

The Captain turned around, because of course he wondered what had happened to his merry men. "Three…" I gave him my best innocent look, like I had no part in planning this- which I didn't. Then another thug smacked him on the back of the head with a frying pan and he slumped to the floor.

Boy, Rapunzel sure was right about those things. They were one of the best inventions ever. If I got out of this alive, the first thing I was going to do was buy one of them. "Frying pans! Who knew, right?"

I heard a crack behind us and saw that the door was being smashed open by more guards. I immediately started to run, where I was running I didn't really know. But one of my thief rules was when in doubt, run. So I followed the thug wherever he was going and somehow he got the cuffs off me at the same time. Pretty amazing, don't you think?

Eventually we reached the courtyard which you would think would have been a good thing. But it wasn't because an innumerable number of armed guards were heading straight for me. I stood there, dumbly, with wide eyes. The moment I saw all those guards, I have to admit to you that my first thought was oh, followed by something else. And I'll give you a hint- it wasn't dearie me. My second thought was I could have twenty frying pans and it wouldn't even make a dent. _Well, that's it_, I thought_. I'm dead, and it just depends on which way I'll die_: run through by one of their spears, run through by one their swords, dragged over to the gallows and _then _run through by one of their spears or swords. So many ways to have a gruesome death, so little time….

Hook-Hand Thug picked me up and moved me over. "Head down," he commanded.

Immediately I knew that he had a plan and if I was smart I'd do as he said. "Head down," I repeated, and brought my head down.

"Arms in," he said.

"Arms in." I brought my arms in.

"Knees apart," he said.

"Knees apart," I said. Wait, what? "Knees apart?" I asked him in surprise. You might find my questioning kind of silly considering that he was trying to help me, and without him, I'd probably be dead. But still. That was weird. What was up with the knees apart? "Why…why do I need to keep my knees apart?"

I had barely finished the question before I started to fly through the air. With the most amazing and astonishing composure, I then proceeded to…scream my head off. "AHHHHHHHH!"

While I soared through the air I managed to do some kind of flip, a really good flip. Actually, it's too bad that I never dreamed of being an acrobat, because that was one amazingly perfect flip in the air that I did. But of course I wasn't thinking that at the time. What I _was _thinking was that instead of being hung and die or and run through by a sword and die, I was going to slam into some wall and die. I shut my eyes because if I was going to smash into something, I didn't want to see my perfect nose or the rest of me break or become black and blue.

But instead of crashing into something, I seemed to suddenly sit on something. I cracked one open, then the other. I took inventory of myself and nothing appeared to be broken or bleeding, but that could be because I had somehow smacked my head really hard and I was hallucinating. Again. Maybe if I got out of this alive I should check into some kind of psych ward for people who had slammed their heads against something one too many times and become insane.

The thing beneath me moved and then nickered. I soon realized that I was sitting on a horse, Max in particular, and I was supposed to have sat on him. which could only mean that Max was part of the scheme to help me. Somehow he must have known what happened to me, and gone for help. "Max!" I said. "You brought them here?" I couldn't believe it. I thought he hated me.

Max nodded slightly. "Thank you," I said and I really meant it. Max had pretty much saved my life. Max gave me a look that seemed to say let's go, but I ignored it because I was so grateful. "No, really, thank you." Since he had done something so nice, I felt like I should apologize or some other such platitude. "Uh…I feel this whole time we've been misunderstanding each other and we're really just….."

Max just looked at me. _Are you seriously going to talk about that now, when the guards are still after you?_ "You're right," I said. "We should go." I nudged my heels into his sides, and he ran off. Really, it wasn't a moment too soon because guards started to shoot arrows at us and guards from another part of the castle began to chase us. Max proceeded to canter right to the edge of the castle, but I thought he was insane. Didn't he know that we'd die that way? "Max…." He kept running. "Max!" I don't know why Max didn't listen to me, because I'm very persuasive, but he just didn't isten to me. He jumped right off the castle. "MAX!"

For the second time that day, I soared through the air and for the second time I screamed my head off. "AHHHHHH!" Max landed on a house, slid down it, and suddenly we were cantering through the streets of Caermoor, with many incredulous people staring at us.

But I didn't care. I was out of prison, and the only thing that now separated me from Rapunzel was miles. I nudged my heels into Max's sides again. "Okay, Max," I said. "Let's see how fast you can run." He immediately sped up, as if he knew how important this was (which of course he did. He liked Rapunzel).

I guided Max in the direction of the tower, because there was no question in my mind that it was where she would go first.

The only question was….would I be too late to help her?


	14. Eugene vs the Dagger

**AN: **Another not-so-fun chapter to write, but it is a very important one. I hope it...somehow adds something to the movie, but of course I don't expect it to be better than the movie. I just hope it's at last a little good...

In this scene, I relied a lot on the screencaps again, though some of them (like Eugene writing on the floor in pain) broke my heart and almost made me cry. Other helpful things were some sad songs that I listened to, like My Immortal and Just a Dream (Carrie Underwood). :( I'm sad now. Going to go cry for Eugene now...

**Over the Weather: **Another mention :) Thanks!

**Crystal-ice-fire: **Thank you :)

**Hawkeyesong: **Thank you! that part wasn't easy to write, and I'm pleased that you liked it.

**KayDee: **Of coure he did :) haha. I hope you like this chapter too.

**Delilahgirl: **I hope it's as intense as you hoped...I don't know if i made it sad enough again, but I hope it's good. As for crying...like I said, I almost cried again when I looked at the screencaps. There are some real heartbreakers in there. :( Thank you.

**Paocg: T**hank you! :) I'm glad that he sounds like himself, and the way I write him lines up with the moview. YAY. I'm also glad that loose ends are tied up for you.

I 3 you reviewers! Your encouragement is amazing!

FL6

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 14- <strong>**Eugene vs. the Dagger **

"Greater love hath no man than this: that a man lay down his life for his friends."

-John 15:13

**As **we neared the tower, I tried to come up with some kind of plan, but all I could think of was rescuing Rapunzel. that was the only thing that mattered: saving her at whatever cost. When Maximus reached the tower, I jumped off him, even before he had fully stopped. I looked up at the tower. Was she here? Well, there was only one way to find out. "Rapunzel!" I called. It came to my mind that I didn't have the arrows that had helped me climb it the previous time. "Rapunzel, let down your hair!"

Silence. I wondered briefly why she didn't answer, but she had to be here. Didn't she? Where else would she have gone? I started to try climbing up the tower with my own bare hands, desperate to reach her. As I did, I heard something creak, and then her hair came tumbling down. I grasped hold of it, and climbed up it. Actually, climbing up hair sounds awfully strange, doesn't it? But it was basically like climbing up a rope, and I had always been good at that. So it didn't take me to long to reach the top.

"Rapunzel," I said with relief when I had entered the tower. "I thought I'd never see you again." Then I caught a glimpse of Rapunzel. My eyes widened, and my worst fears about her had come true: She had a gag across her mouth, her hands chained behind her. I stared at her for a second, completely horrified. She seemed to be trying desperately to say something through the cloth, but I had no idea what that would be. I started toward her, to help her, but before I could, something cold and sharp pierced my side. Stabbing pain spread through my body, and I slumped to the floor, clutching the wound. I heard Rapunzel cry out, but I couldn't say anything to her.

"Now look what you've done, Rapunzel," said a woman. I could only assume it was Rapunzel's mother, though I found that very hard to believe. No mother would chain up their daughter to a wall, no mother would let her daughter almost fall into the hands of two criminals. And no mother would stab someone, especially someone whom she knew was important to her daughter (no, I'm not actually trying to be pompous here. I was important to Rapunzel, just like she was important to me). Besides that, there was no way that it was somehow Rapunzel's fault that she had stabbed me. My first interaction with Gothel (that was her name and I'm going to call her that because calling her Rapunzel's "mother" is too tedious), and I already hated how she treated Rapunzel. The idea of this being _Rapunzel's_ fault! Condescending witch! "Oh, don't worry, dear. Our secret will die with him."

Her use of the word _die _was not lost on me, and I was smart enough to know that this kind of wound could be fatal. I could already feel the blood begin to flow out of me, and if I lost too much, I'd probably die. _Have….to….stop….the….bleeding,_ I thought. Vaguely I remembered something about pressure stopping bleeding. So I continued to clutch my side, and shut my eyes as if I could somehow block out the piercing pain as I could block out my sight. Everything in me hurt so badly that I started to clench my teeth. I let a groan escape. "Ahh…."

While I writhed on the floor in complete agony, I heard Gothel speak again. "And as for us," she continued. "We are going where no one will ever find you again." At the edge of my consciousness, I could hear scuffling and I assumed-with the small part of my brain that _wasn't_ screaming out in pain- that Rapunzel was fighting Gothel. Her struggle with Gothel was no surprise to me, considering that she had managed to knock me out and tie me up with her hair. She was a very strong girl. "Rapunzel, really! Enough already," she ordered. "Stop-Fighting-Me!"

Rapunzel must have lost her gag somehow because she began to talk back to Gothel. "_No_," she said loudly. "I won't stop. For every minute of the rest of my life, I will fight! I will never stop trying to get away from you!" She paused for a moment. "But if you let me save him, I will go with you."

I hadn't even thought about the possibility of her using her hair again to heal me. But I couldn't let her sacrifice her freedom for my life by doing so. I had already seen enough of this Gothel woman to know that she didn't love Rapunzel and would keep her imprisoned again with no contact with the world. It sounded atrocious to me-I had seen her joy when she left her tower, and I had seen the way she interacted with people and how much she cared about them- and how much they liked her in return. I couldn't let her return to that life, I couldn't. Not for my sake. "No," I groaned in protest. "No, Rapunzel."

She ignored me completely. "I'll never run, I'll never try to escape," she said. "Just let me heal him and you and I will be together. Forever! Just the way you want. Everything will be the way it was!" She took a deep breath. "I…promise."

My heart sank when I heard her say that: because if there was one thing I knew about Rapunzel it was that she never broke a promise. Ever. And she wouldn't break this one, even if it would ruin her life and break her heart. And break mine too.

"Just like you want," Rapunzel said softly. "Just let me heal him."

After Rapunzel said that, Gothel relented, took the chains off Rapunzel….and put one on me instead. "Just in case you get any ideas about following us," she snarled at me. The whole chain thing was actually quite smart of her because _of course_ I would follow them to the ends of the earth to save Rapunzel.

By that time, blood had soaked through my shirt to my vest and the pain was excruciating. In fact it was so bad that I could barely even breathe. You don't think I'm exaggerating, do you? Because being stabbed hurts more than anything you could possibly imagine. It was all I could do not to scream bloody murder, but I wasn't the screaming type. So I let out many moans and groans instead. Then Rapunzel rushed over to me and immediately stroked my face with her hands, as if she could somehow soothe my pain. Although that was pretty much impossible, it just shows again how incredibly compassionate she is. "Eu, Eugene!" she said.

Another surge of pain coursed through my body. "Ahhh…."

Instantly Rapunzel's gaze shifted to my wound-and my hand covering it. Gently she moved my hand and inhaled sharply. She was no dummy, and clearly she knew how bad it was. She pulled her hand back. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she said. "Everything's going to be fine though."

You know, I love Rapunzel, but seriously. Everything would be fine? Really? I found that hard-no, I found that_ impossible_- to believe, even in my weakened state. How could any of this possibly be described as _fine_? Would her life be fine if she lived imprisoned again with that woman for the rest of her life? Would my own life be fine if I lived the rest of it without her? Would the rest of my life be fine if I lived every day with the knowledge that she was trapped once more, and this time because of me? No, everything _wouldn't_ be fine. Don't get me wrong, I knew she would be able to heal me (and on that count things could be described as_ fine_). Of course I did. That's just what I was afraid of-if she healed me, she'd doom herself. And I couldn't let her do it. As she tried to put her hair on me, I shoved her hand away. "No, Rapunzel."

"I promise," she said. "You just have to trust me."

I _did_ trust her implicitly, but I still wasn't going to let her heal me. I shoved her hand away again. "No."

"Come on," she said soothingly and calmly. "Just breathe."

I didn't tell her that breathing was pretty much impossible or that each time I did try to breathe normally it hurt even more. And her calmness did nothing to ease the agony that I was feeling- both physically and emotionally. I had to stop her from destroying her life. I _had_ to. "I can't let you do this."

Sorrow filled her large green eyes. "And I can't let you die."

The way she said it broke my heart. I knew she cared about me too much to let me die without doing anything about it. And she was giving up a life of freedom for me. If I hadn't loved her enough already, I loved her even more for doing this. Still, I didn't _want_ her to do it."But if you do this…."

She put one hand comfortingly on the side of my face. "Shh…"

"…Then you will die," I finished, trying to tell her that a life with Gothel would pretty much be a living death for her.

I could tell from her eyes that she understood. "Hey," she said softly. "It's gonna be all right."

I smiled weakly at her, though it was an almost…false smile, because she was totally wrong. Again. Everything _wasn't_ going to be all right; it couldn't be- not when we wouldn't be together, not when she would live imprisoned again with Gothel. By one of my hands, I felt something….almost sharp….was that, was that glass? Hmm. Glass is sharp, glass can cut. Suddenly I heard Rapunzel say in my head, "But once it's cut, it turns brown and loses its power." It was obvious to me that Gothel mostly wanted Rapunzel for her hair, and in that split second, I made my decision. I curled my fingers around the glass. I looked at her, and she was closing her eyes, preparing to sing the incantation. "Rapunzel, wait."

Now, people have asked me about my choice when I tell this story, like when I decided to cut her hair, did I know that I was going to die? And the answer is….absolutely. Yes, I knew it in the same instant as the shard of glass sliced through her hair. I knew _exactly _what I was doing. But somehow it didn't matter: All that mattered was that she was _free_. The truth was…_is _that I love Rapunzel more than life itself, and I would rather die than see her shackled to the horrid woman that was supposedly her mother.

Really, was there any other choice? All the choices were bad for both Rapunzel and me. If I lived, I would be away from Rapunzel, but she would live imprisoned. If I died, I would be away from Rapunzel, but at least I'd know she could live freely. The same was true for Rapunzel: She could either let me die, or go with Gothel but I'd be healed. I understood why she did what she did, but the truth was that neither Rapunzel nor I could win because we would lose each other either way. Really, the only person who would win either way was her "mother"-she would get exactly what she wanted, which was Rapunzel (though I was starting to think she just wanted Rapunzel's power, and didn't care about the girl herself).

Can't you see how I'd prefer death in this scenario? So I took the glass and cut her hair straight through with it- hoping that by doing so Gothel would let Rapunzel go. Naturally, cutting her hair took all the strength that I had left (which I have to tell you wasn't much), so my hand dropped back down to my side, and I slumped against the stairs.

Things get a little fuzzy here; at least for me, anyway. After I cut her hair, I pretty much found myself drifting off into the land of unconsciousness, and the medical reason that they would tell you is that I had lost so much blood that I went into shock. Pleasant, right? But in reality, the land of unconsciousness really wasn't that bad: it was kind of like falling, except much more pleasant. Maybe more like floating down a river or something, but nicer considering I wasn't a big fan of rivers (since I'd almost drowned. I think I might have preferred to die that way though, because even if it wouldn't be as dramatic it probably would hurt quite a bit less).

Now Rapunzel can tell this part clearly, but then she hadn't been dying. She says that after I cut her hair, she put her hand to her head, completely shocked. "Eugene…what?" It didn't take her long to figure out that since her hair's healing power was gone, I would die. She stared at the hair brokenhearted, as the brown spread through her seventy feet of hair.

As devastated as she was, she told me later that her reaction was nothing compared to her "mother's". "No! No! What have you done? What have you done?" she cried. She immediately scooped up the hair, thinking that the loss of the power wouldn't cause her to age rapidly, trip on the hair, fall out of the window, and turn into dust.

But that's what_ did_ happen to her. As for me, I was still floating and drifting down the Peaceful River. That is, until I felt somebody pulling me and heard Rapunzel's voice (though it seemed like it came from very far away). "No, no, no, no, no!" More arms pulling me back, back out of the fuzziness. "Eugene…"

I tried to open my eyes, but it was too hard. It hurt too much everywhere, and opening my eyes was like trying to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders. Meaning it took too much strength, strength that I didn't have. Even my head felt heavy, though I could feel her hands cradling the back of it."No, look at me!' she said desperately. "I'm right here! "Don't go! Stay with me, Eugene!"

Her hand stroked my face, then she took one of my limp hands and placed it on her hair- as if the magic was still somehow there. I knew it wasn't though; that was the whole point of my cutting her hair. "Flower gleam and glow," she sang.

She sounded panicked now. I forced myself to open my eyes a crack, so I could try to calm her. My heart was beginning to slow, and I could tell I only had a few minutes left. What should I tell her before I went? "Rapunzel…"

"Let you power…shine…" she continued brokenly.

I tried again to get her attention. "Hey…"

"Make the clock reverse, bring back what once was mine," she finished in a choked voice.

I tried once more to get her attention, and brought her face toward me. "Rapunzel."

She let out a sob. "What?"

My heartbeat slowed even more, and I knew-for real-that I was dying. But I couldn't go without her knowing how I felt about her. She had to know before I died how much I loved her, and how much I had dreamed of a life with her. Instead of chasing down a silly daydream of money, I now dreamed of her- only her. And that's what I would tell her. "You were my new dream," I whispered.

Her eyes filled with tears, and it was clear that she knew (by the past tense) that I was about to leave her. "And you were mine."

I was hers- that meant that she felt the same as me. I wished for more time with her- maybe….maybe give her that kiss that I'd been dreaming about since yesterday, but my time was through. I closed my eyes and breathed out one last time.

And let myself go, willingly this time:

Because everything _was_ fine now. Rapunzel was okay.

Rapunzel was _free. _


	15. Eugene vs Death

**AN: **Okay so I know this chapter took forever, and I'm sorry :( I'm not completely happy with this one either, but I am SO sick of looking at it. Besides that, I'm going on vacation this week, and I won't probably update for a while again. I know this chapter has a lot of dialogue, but I hope it's okay.

As for the whole...where Eugene goes after he dies thing, well usually I can't separate my own personal beliefs from what I write, but when it came to death, I _really_ couldn't separate the two. So yes. I DO believe in God and heaven. If that bothers you...I'm sorry. You don't have to read it. But i wasn't going to change this just because it might not be "PC". I'm not a very "PC" person. And when I thought about what to do after he died...this is always what I thought of.

Delilahgirl**-** yes, but she had to watch him die which I think is so much worse :(

Hawkeyesong- aw, it's okay :) I'm just glad it was sad. It's a sad scene, a tragic scene, and I'm happy that the sadness came through.

Paocg- No, it doesn't. I am too. He's just so loveable- I love my verison of him because he's still witty but he's nice too. :) Anyway, no, you're NOT weird. He's awesome. And thanks!

Kaydee-I'm guessing it was sad? :( It is such a depressing scene...I was depressed after I wrote it.

Overtheweather- Thanks! I wish he had time to kiss her too!

Unraisedclock- Thanks! Sorry it took so long :(

Crystal-ice-fire- Thanks :)

As always, much LOVE to you all. Thank you for reading!

FL 6

Disclaimer- I own a Rapunzel doll, a Tangled DVD, a frying pan, a Tangled soundtrack, and a copy of I See the Light sheet music, but other than that? I own nothing. :)

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><p><strong>Chapter 15-Eugene vs. Death<strong>

"And to his eye

There was but one beloved face on earth

And it was shining on him."

-George Gordon, Lord Byron

**As **soon as I had let go, I felt the oddest sensation of falling- just falling, falling, falling into a seemingly endless dark , after falling down for a seemingly eternity, light started to shine. And then I found myself standing with a bunch of other men and women, standing in line. At the pearly gates- that were actually made of pearls and gold.

Amazing. And I thought it was just an expression. Who knew that the pearly gates actually existed?

"So," a man standing next to me spoke. "What brought _you _here?"

I couldn't help a sarcastic reply. "Um, I died?" _Hello? No, sir, I just randomly decided to leave my love, and come talk to idiots. _What do you think?

He snorted. "No really." Then he smirked. "Everybody here died, Socrates. I meant, _how _did you die."

Ah. "Well, I took a knife to the side…and bled to death."

He grimaced. "Pleasant."

Pleasant, my foot. I hoped he was being sarcastic- because bleeding to death was the worst way to die, in my opinion. The only upside to how I had died was I had been in Rapunzel's arms. "Completely. You should try it sometime," I said facetiously. Then I caught a glimpse of a pool of water with many people crowded around it. "What's that?"

He smiled a little. "Oh that? Whoever you carry in your heart, you can see them from here and how they are doing."

The person I carried in my heart…..was Rapunzel. Was it truly possible to see her? "Really?"

"Yes," he said. "Do you want to try it? I can tell you what your number is, so you'll come back when you're called. I'm 366, so you're 367."

"Thank you," I said, then I walked over to the pool and found a empty space. There was a girl next to me, but I stared at the water. I thought about Rapunzel: how much I loved her, how much I missed her already.

Suddenly the water rippled, and I could see her-her image as clear as if I actually was there again. I studied her: to me it looked like Rapunzel hadn't moved at all, because her hand was still cradling the back of my head, my body in her arms, just like she had been when I left. I wondered if time was different here, because it seemed to me that I had been gone for a very long time already, but it looked like it had been only seconds to her. I looked at myself. Hmmm. Don't take this the wrong way, but I thought then that I still looked good, even when I was dead. Hey, don't look at me like that. I did!

Poor Rapunzel, though. Her eyes were so sad that I thought she was about to cry. My heart started to ache with loneliness for her, and I wished that I could be there with her and hold her so she'd feel better. _Please don't cry_, I thought. _Please don't cry, Rapunzel._

I heard a throat clear next to me. "Hello," said the girl. "I'm Jane."

Jane! Jane was the plainest name I'd ever heard, though she wasn't actually that plain. Of course, Rapunzel was prettier. She was prettier than anyone. "Eugene."

"Pleasure," she said, then she gestured at the pool. "Is that you?"

"Yes," I answered, though everything that made me _me _was here (whatever and wherever_ here_ was), not there. Well, except my body that is. But Rapunzel would probably say that all my Eugene-ness was here, which was true.

She looked at the pool me thoughtfully. "You were handsome."

Before Rapunzel, I would have said something cocky or flirty to that. "I guess so," I said, thinking how much I hated the past tense: Like Rapunzel_ was_ my new dream, I _was_ hers, I _was _handsome. Ugh. The past tense just was another reminder that I wasn't with Rapunzel anymore.

"Who's the girl?" she asked.

"That's…..that's Rapunzel," I answered.

"You loved her."

It wasn't a question. So, this girl was smart, just like Rapunzel was. No, like Rapunzel _is_. She wasn't dead. "Yes."

"Did she love you?"

Did she? She said I was her new dream, which probably meant that she loved me. Plus, she had almost destroyed her own life so I'd live. "I….I think she did."

She studied Rapunzel for a minute, then nodded. "She did, I can tell. Look how sad she is-like she's heartbroken that you're gone." She glanced at her again and she smiled at me. "You know, she's quite pretty."

Pretty! Rapunzel was more than just pretty. Rapunzel was beautiful, gorgeous, stunning…. "She's perfect."

She nodded slightly. "Bad hair cut though."

I smiled crookedly at that- because Rapunzel's hair _was_ a little bit choppy in the back. I hoped that she'd be able to have somebody fix it after she left the tower because I really had butchered her hair. "Not my finest work, I have to say."

She just looked at me. "Oh, so you did that? I have news for you: never, ever, cut hair again."

I doubted that I would have a chance. "Really? Well, at the time I was dying and only had a shard of glass to cut with."

"Sit," she said.

"What?"

"Sit down. This sounds like one crazy story and I am so curious to hear it."

So I told her everything, from the frying pan to the last "You were my new dream." She was silent for a long moment afterward. Then finally she spoke. "That's truly tragic. I feel awful for Rapunzel."

"For…..Rapunzel?" Hello? Wasn't_ I_ the one who had died?

"Yes," she said. "When I died, I left my fiancée. I know it will be tougher for him-and your Rapunzel-because they were the ones left behind. They still have a lot of their lives to live- without us. And for somebody you were truly in love with, you don't want to even live one moment without them, much less a lifetime."

Jane was right about that. "I suppose."

"Besides that," she continued. "I don't know what your Rapunzel will do now, considering the only people she really knew were you and Gothel, and you're both gone. Where will she go?"

Where would Rapunzel go? I hadn't thought much about that back in the tower. All I had thought was…..free Rapunzel. But I guessed she could go look for her real family. "I don't know…I guess she could go looking for her mother, because it was obvious to me that it wasn't that woman."

"But she won't want to go anywhere without you beside her," she said. "The person who showed her the world."

It was a fact that Rapunzel was now alone in the world, but it felt like a smack in the face, even though Jane was absolutely right. Why hadn't I thought about that when I had cut her hair? I had felt terrible that I had left her, but now I felt even worse. If I had been smarter, I supposed that I could have cut her hair after she had healed me. Why hadn't I done that? Deep down, I already knew the answer to that: for once, I hadn't thought of what would be better for me, I hadn't thought of myself one bit. I had only thought of her, and thinking of her meant that I had sacrificed myself. "You know," I said. "You're not making me feel any better about this."

She flushed. "I'm…..I'm sorry. I know you must feel awful about this whole thing."

I would have answered yes, but then my number was called. I made my way to the front of the line and an old man with a gray beard sat in front of me with two books. "Name?" he asked.

"Eugene Fitzherbert."

He frowned. "Hmm." Then he turned to a page and his frown deepened. "Quite a record you've got here, Mr. Fitzherbert." He looked at me with narrowed eyes. "Or should I say Flynn Rider?"

I cringed. "Yes, I know."

"Let's see, multiple charges of stealing, lying, taking advantage of people, cheating people, breaking out of jail…."

I cringed again. "I know."

His expression changed. "…..yet it says here the last thing you did was give up your life so that a girl could live freely."

"Yes," I said. Rapunzel's lovely face appeared in my mind. "Her name was….was Rapunzel."

His eyes softened. "Rapunzel…."

"Yes," I said again. "She was the most wonderful girl I'd ever met."

"So what did you do?"

"It's kind of long story," I said. "But her mother stabbed me because she was….a….horrible woman, and then Rapunzel offered to use her magic healing hair to save me in return for going with her mother. But I couldn't let her do that, so I cut her hair. And so I died."

"Why did you do that?"

I thought for a minute. "Well," I said finally. "It sounds weird because I'd only known her for a few days, but I did it because…..because I love her."

He nodded. "I understand."

"Really." Did he?

"Yes," he said, then looked distracted. "Can you wait for a minute, Eugene?"

I shrugged. "Why not?"

He walked away for a few minutes, but then he came back-with a big smile on his face. "I have good news for you, Eugene."

"Yes?"

"You're going back," he said.

"I'm…what?" Did he really say what I thought he did? Going back….to Rapunzel? To Corona? Really? Did that mean I'd live again?

"We're sending you back," he said. "We never do this, but we've granted an exception in your case."

I blinked. Maybe I was just delusional….Again. "Are you really telling me what I think you are? I'm going back….to Rapunzel?"

"Yes. Make the most of your second chance, Eugene," he said. "And say hello to your love."

Suddenly I felt myself falling again, back through the light, back through the dark, and back to the tower, where Rapunzel still sat-as if she still hadn't moved an inch- with my lifeless body in her arms, her hand still cradling my head. I fell into it, and I opened my eyes."Rapunzel?"

"Eugene?" she whispered tentatively, as if she wasn't sure if it was me or not.

Well, I could easily solve that by saying something only I would say. "Did I ever tell you I've got a thing for brunettes?"

Sure enough, all her doubt vanished. "Eugene!" she cried, and threw her arms around my neck. I pulled her gently onto my lap and buried my head in her shoulder, wrapping one arm around her as close as I could- because I never, ever wanted to let her go. It felt so wonderful to be back with her, to know that I would never have to leave her.

Soon she looked at me, and almost laughed, I guessed, because she was just so happy. I smiled back at her, so glad to see her beautiful face again. Then she pulled me by my collar and kissed me-kissed me_ very_ earnestly. I have to admit to you that I was surprised at first, because I didn't expect her to just initiate a kiss like that, but after my surprise left….Well, I returned the kiss, even deepened it, because kissing her? Wow.

You know how there are some things that you see people do, and think that might be fun? And then you actually do it, and you're like oh, ugh, why did I want to do that, it wasn't nearly as fun as I thought it would be?

Well, kissing Rapunzel wasn't like that: It was just as fun as I thought it would be, and even more. It's _fantastic_, really (especially that one-our first, and before we had thought we'd be parted forever). In fact, it's so fun that I don't know why we don't do it all the time (though I doubt her parents would appreciate the lapse in her princess duties). Besides that, I don't know why I'm standing here, talking to you, when this story is nearing the end, and I could go kiss my fiancée (aka Rapunzel).

Oh fine. You're right, there is more to come. I still want to go kiss her now, but I'll finish the story anyway.

Sadly, she pulled away soon after that. She had the biggest smile on her face though, so I couldn't be too upset. "Did I do that well?" she asked. "I've never done that before, and I hope I wasn't….you know, bad at it."

Did she do that well? Oh lord. And her _bad?_ Everyone should be as "bad" as her. "No, Rapunzel. You were amazing," I assured her.

She smiled again. "Oh, good."

Suddenly I had a wonderful idea- we should kiss again, and again, and again….."In fact, you were so good that I have a stupendous idea."

"Yes?"

"Let's do it again."

She laughed. "Okay…but I have a question for you first."

"Yeah?" I have to admit that I was day-dreaming about kissing her again then, and didn't pay much attention to the fact that she was going to ask me a not-so-fun question.

Rapunzel's eyes turned serious. "What happened to you last night?"

My happy mood evaporated. I should have known she'd ask me that-sooner or later. Looks like it was sooner. I didn't want to tell her what happened, but I knew I would anyway. She deserved to know.

"You said you'd be right back." Her voice was calm and neutral but her eyes looked….hurt.

"Rapunzel….I'm sorry," I said. "I thought I would be, I promise."

"Why didn't you?" Her face looked so crestfallen that if I hadn't felt bad enough yesterday for not returning I felt even worse now.

"Um, well…" I said. "There in lies…the tale. Um, after I left you, I went to give the crown back to my partners, the Stabbingtons, because I didn't want it. All I wanted was to be with you. But…"

"But?" she asked softly.

"But they didn't want it. They wanted _you_ instead."

"Me…." Her voice trailed off.

"Yeah," I told her. "They wanted you- and sell you as some kind of…I don't know, healing slave. Well, I couldn't let them do that to you. So I told them I wouldn't let them, and to get to you they'd have to go through me first."

"Let me guess," she said sarcastically. "They were really persuaded by that, and then you sat down with them, held hands, and sang Kumbaya."

I laughed in spite of myself. "No. Thor-he's the smarter of the two, you see- said something burly like that can be arranged, and they knocked me out."

She frowned. "With a frying pan?"

"I don't know," I answered. "I don't think so." Actually, it could be that Thor might have just smashed his fist in the back of my head. I mean, it would have been just as effective as a frying pan, considering how big and heavy it is.

Her expression cleared. "Good. That's _my_ secret weapon."

I laughed again. She was so cute. "Of course it is, Rapunzel," I said. "Anyway, after that they tied me to a boat…." I couldn't help but notice that Rapunzel frowned again, but I continued. "….and tied the crown to my hands. Well, as you might guess, the guards found me, arrested me and threw me in jail."

Rapunzel chewed nervously on her lower lip. "And then?"

"Well….this morning I was going to be hung," I said. She looked stricken then, and sad, but not surprised. I hated seeing her sad, so I tried to make a joke. "Jolly story, right?"

She didn't smile or laugh. "No, Eugene," she said firmly. "It's a _horrible_ story. Why are you trying to make it funny? Am I supposed to laugh that you were almost executed?"

Brutal honesty, that's Rapunzel….and when she put it that way, my joking _did _seem silly. "No," I said slowly. "I just…I don't know. I hate upsetting you."

She sighed. "I know, but I need to know…."

She did, even though I hated telling her this story. It was a horrible story, just like she said. "So…I was walking to my…doom, when the Snuggly Duckling thugs broke me out. Max had told them what happened, can you believe it?"

Her eyes started to lose some of their sadness. "Actually, I can," she said. "I always thought he was a good horse."

Of course she did- she had said he was nothing like a big sweetheart. And she was right. "Well," I said. "I'll admit reluctantly that he is- and he's a really fast runner too. He got me here in record time. And you know everything after that. So what happened to you last night?"

She sighed again. "I waited for you for what felt like an eternity, and then your partners came to me and said…."

I finished her sentence for her. "They said that I told them about your hair, ran off with the crown, and left you, didn't they?" She was silent, but I saw a solitary tear trickle down her cheeks. I knew that meant they did, and she thought I had betrayed her. I took her hands. "Rapunzel, I'm so sorry."

She looked like she wanted to cry, but somehow she didn't. "I know, Eugene. It's not…it's not your fault."

She was sweet to say it wasn't, but it was my fault. It was _totally_ my fault. It was my fault that the Stabbingtons had learned about her, it was my fault that I had let them knock me out and they had almost captured her…. Everything bad that happened to her over the past few days _had_ been my fault. I didn't know how to tell her that.

But Rapunzel was still talking. "She….knocked them out though, and we came back here," she said. "Eugene, can I ask you something else?"

"Of course."

"What would you have done if they hadn't knocked you out?"

Okay, now this was an easy question to answer, even a fun one. I got to tell her what I wished had happened last night. "Well, I was going to come back to you…"

"And?" she said.

"And I was going to kiss you…" I continued.

"Like you just did?"

I smiled at her. "Yes. After I kissed you, I was going to tell you how much I cared about you, and then…" I hesitated- because last night I was going to ask her to come away with me. And we could now. But would she want to? I didn't know why she wouldn't…"I was going to ask you to come away with me." Her eyes widened. "We can still do that, if you want to."

She just stared at me for a second, then she sighed. "Eugene….I'd love to."

"Really?" She would go off with me? We could go off and be together, forever? Really? Just like that? It sounded to good to be true (and of course, like most things that sound too good to be true, it was).

"Yes," she said. "But while you were off in prison, I learned something about myself."

Hmm. I wonder what she had learned. Maybe that Gothel wasn't her mother? "Okay….so tell me."

"You have to promise you won't freak out," she said, giving me a wary look.

I supposed she was thinking about the last time she had said that. But that had been her hair! I assumed she wasn't about to show me that another part of her could heal- maybe it would be her hands this time? "Rapunzel…of course I won't."

She sighed again. "Eugene….I'm the lost princess."

I just looked at her like it idiot, then let out a strangled laugh. Rapunzel, my sweet Rapunzel…the lost princess? Now that was funny.

She frowned. "Eugene, why are you laughing?"

I shook my head, and stuck my finger in my ear. Maybe I had heard her wrong- like she had said I'm the frost incense (Yeah. I had thought the same thing when she said her hair glows. You would think that I'd have learned by now that the crazy things she said were _always _true, no matter how weird they sounded). "I'm sorry, it's just I think I have some cotton in my ear or something-because I thought you said that you were the lost princess. But that can't be right," I said. She was quiet. "Can it? Rapunzel?"

She stared at her hands for a long minute. "It's true, Eugene. I am the lost princess."

Suddenly I knew she _was_ the lost princess, because she would never, ever lie to me. And in some weird, twisted way her being the lost princess….did kind of make sense. I mean, before her birth, the Queen had been sick, a golden glowing flower had saved her...it was possible that the power of the flower had gone through the Queen and into her baby girl. That would explain Rapunzel's magic hair. Besides that, Rapunzel was the same age as the princess, even had the same birthday, had been drawn to the lanterns just like the King and Queen had hoped their daughter would be. And since I had cut her hair, Rapunzel started to look a lot like the Queen. Now it was so obvious to me that I felt stupid for not figuring it out. Rapunzel _was _the lost princess of Corona, I knew it for sure.

But that didn't mean I liked it. I hated the thought of it, actually. I mean, I loved the thought of her finding her family, but let's be realistic: Princesses don't marry commoners, especially not common, wanted thieves like me. Deep down, I had this horrible feeling I would lose her again-because why on earth would her parents want her to be with Flynn Rider? They'd probably want her to marry some prince, a prince who was probably everything I wasn't. Part of me selfishly wanted to take her as far away from the castle as possible.

But that would be wrong. I knew what the right thing was: take her back to Caermoor so she could reunite with her family. They deserved their daughter, she deserved her family, and Corona deserved its princess. Rapunzel would be an amazing princess, too.

"Eugene?"

Rapunzel interrupted my thoughts. "Hmmm?"

She looked at me again, a concerned glint in her eyes. "Did you…did you hear what I said?"

"Yes," I said numbly. "You're the lost princess."

She nodded slowly. "Right."

"So we should go back to Caermoor so you can meet your…parents," I said. "Right now." _Before I decided to take you the complete opposite direction…._

Rapunzel looked at me carefully. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," I said, even though I didn't feel sure. At all. Wasn't there the possibility that I could be executed if I went back? "We can go, just as soon as we get this cuff off me."

She blinked. "Right," she said. "She put the key in her bodice, I think. I guess….I guess I'll go down and get it." She stood up and walked off before I could say anything. I suppose it was because it would hurt her and make her sad to see the dust of the woman she had thought for so long was her mother.

I wished with all of me that I could go down and do it instead, but I couldn't.

All I could do was wait.

I hated waiting.


	16. Eugene vs the Scissors

**AN**: So, I'm sorry that it took this long for me to update (12 days, I think that's a record for me) but as you know I was on vacation, and between that and finishing up my summer class, I was really busy. So thank you for being patient :) A few words about this chapter...So I didn't plan for it to take, like TWO chapters for them to get out of the tower, but I started writing cute fluff, and writing cute fluff made me write MORE cute fluff, and well, this is the result. I didn't want to cut out any of the cute fluff because I liked it so much. And the quote at the beginning refers more to the fact that Eugene cut her hair badly, not that he cut it at all, because I don't think he would ever regret doing that.

**Crystalicefire-** thanks! I'm glad you liked it.

**Paocg- **Yes, I make it my mission in life to make you cry through my incredible writing.

Haha, no, I'm just teasing! My own inner snarky Eugene came out there wink, wink. I don't purposefully try to make people cry, but I'm a little bit happy because that means you can feel the emotions that I'm trying to write, and it's very complimentary :) And I'm glad you liked it the heaven part. I'm glad you liked chapter 1 too. It was really so much fun to write.

**Delilahgirl- **YAY. I'm very glad you liked it, and I liked that he asked her to go away with him too. It's just so cute and romantic. I kind of wish they did, wink wink. As for the chapters, well, since I wrote so much cute fluff, there might be two after this. :) And don't worry about the message.

**KayDee- **Well, there you go :) but I think it might have been hard for her, since she thought Gothel was her mother for her entire life and now she's gone.

**UnraisedClock- **Sorry about the wait, but I hope it was worth it :)

**Silvermoony- **Aw, I'm glad you liked it! Ch. 14 wasn't easy, so I'm glad it came off so well. Thanks! I like the water idea, and it actually partly came from something my mom said to me. :)

**Reverend Lovejoy- **I like Luke too. In fact, I might write more about him because I think he's pretty awesome. and yes, I think that nice guards can exist :)

**Hawkeye-song- **Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. It's not easy to write him when he's dead, so I'm happy it came off well.

**Overtheweather- **ME TOO. Because although Eugene is amazing and stupendous, Rapunzel is too.

Thank you all for reading and reviewing! 3

FL 6

Disclaimer- I do not own Tangled.

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><p><strong>Chapter 16- Eugene<strong> **vs. the Scissors **

Some of the worst mistakes of my life have been haircuts.  
><strong>Jim Morrison<strong>

**I **don't know how long I waited for Rapunzel, but it felt like an eternity. As I waited for her, I caught sight of my own vest, and to my own amazement, there was no blood on it at all. Huh. Maybe Rapunzel knew something about it. I'd have to ask her when she came back.

Finally she did, with a small key in her hand, but I couldn't help but notice how sad and forlorn she looked. Wordlessly, she came over to me and unlocked the cuff. I couldn't help but ask her about it. "Rapunzel," I said. "Are you….okay?"

She blinked once. Then twice. "I guess so."

She wasn't, but I didn't know what to say to help her feel better. Saying it will be okay sounded cliché considering she had just lost the person she had thought for eighteen years was her mother. So I decided to ask her something else instead. "Rapunzel, do you know anything about why I have no blood on my vest anymore?"

She blinked again. "I'm not sure. After you went, I just sat for a while feeling sad. Then I started…. then I started to cry because…because you left me."

I felt horrible for leaving her, but I felt even worse once I heard she cried. Gently I took her hands in mine. "I'm so sorry, Rapunzel." It seemed to me that I'd done nothing but apologize to her since I'd been back, but I meant every single "I'm sorry" that I'd said. I was sorry that I hadn't come back to her last night, I was sorry that the Stabbingtons had convinced her that I'd betrayed her, I was sorry that she'd almost been captured by them, I was sorry that I hadn't been there to protect her, and I was sorry that I had left her. But one thing I don't think I would _ever_ be sorry about was sacrificing myself so she could be free.

She stared at our joined hands, then looked up at me, and I could see a faint sheen of tears in her eyes. "Eugene," she said in the saddest voice. "Why did you…why did you choose to leave me?"

Whoa. What I did sounded absolutely terrible when she put it that way, and it didn't sound like the unselfish thing that I had been trying to do. But she _was_ right, because I had made the choice to die and leave her instead of letting her heal me. "Rapunzel," I said carefully. "I'm sorry; I didn't _want_ to leave you…."

"Then why did you?" she asked instantly.

Hmm. How to explain this to her…. "Rapunzel, I just…I just couldn't stand the thought of you living with that woman for the rest of your life- for my sake. I hated the thought of it. So I cut your hair, hoping that if I did, she would let you go."

Rapunzel's eyes looked surprised, but I wasn't sure why. Was it because I said I didn't want her to live imprisoned? I didn't want her to live with Gothel? As it turned out, it was neither of those. "You knew? You knew that she wasn't my mother?" She seemed absolutely dumbstruck that I knew that.

It seemed odd to me that she was so surprised. I was no idiot, nad most mothers didn't treat their daughters the way Gotel had treated her. "Well, yeah," I said. "I mean, Rapunzel, I'm not sure…I'm not sure if you know this, but typical mothers don't endanger their daughters. Or stab their daughter's…their daughter's…" I wasn't sure what word to describe myself. Friends didn't go far enough to describe what we were. I guess I could call myself her beau. Ugh. I hated the word beau. It was just so….French. "...uh…dream. It's just not part of the mother's handbook."

"I guess," she said. "I just sometimes feel stupid and silly that I didn't figure it out before."

To me it wasn't too surprising that she hadn't. I wouldn't be surprised if Gothel had completely brainwashed her, so why would she think that she had a family outside? "Um, well. Don't."

Her eyes were puzzled. "Don't?"

I didn't want to her to keep beating herself up about this. "Yeah," I said. "Don't. I mean, you were trapped up in a tower for eighteen years."

She frowned, then her eyes flashed a little. And I knew that somehow I had put my foot in my mouth. "Don't feel bad that I didn't figure it out because I lived in a tower for eighteen years? So I shouldn't know any better?" Her eyes flashed again. "Oh, Rapunzel," she mimicked. "Don't feel stupid. Why would you know?"

Yep. I had _definitely_ put my foot in my mouth. I tried immediately to apologize. "Rapunzel, I'm-…"

But she didn't let me say anything. "I mean, you don't know anything and I know so much more about the world than you do because I'm the mighty, all-knowing Flynn Rider," she finished. "Eugene, do you _know_ how condescending you sound?"

What? I wasn't actually _trying_ to be condescending for a change. "Rapunzel-…."

She continued to talk right over me. "Yes, I know I'm a little bit naïve…." (which is true)

"Rapunzel-…."

"…But I'm not stupid!" (also true- anybody who called Rapunzel an idiot was…..well, an idiot.) "I think I've showed that plenty of times…"

"Rapunzel-…"

"…Besides that, I'm the one who convinced the thugs to not beat you up!"

Finally, she stopped talking and I took the chance. "Rapunzel," I said in my calmest voice. "I know; you are incredibly smart. I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make you feel dumb."

She let out a deep sigh. "I, I know. I overreacted. It's just…I just get sick of people underestimating me, you know? Or thinking I'm gullible, naïve…"

People….meaning Gothel. I was starting to get the feeling that everything wasn't exactly sunshine and light in _that _relationship. "I know." Then I remembered what had prompted this whole discussion. "So back to my question…you were crying…"

She blinked. "Right. I was crying, and then…I don't know. I guess one of my tears landed on you, and then there was this magical glowing flower, and it made your wound disappear. Then you came back to me."

A magical glowing _flower_? I wasn't sure I wanted to understand that, but maybe somehow a drop of power had managed to stay, and it came out in her tear. "I see." _Time for a new topic_…. "Well, we should probably get you back to your parents."

"Right." She stood up, and then stopped by the broken mirror. She looked at the back of her hair in the mirror, and I saw her frown slightly. I cringed. Jane was right when she said it was a bad haircut- because it was raggedy and completely uneven. Note to self: don't _ever_ cut hair again.

She turned to me. "Eugene, before we go, can you do something for me?"

I would do anything for her, but I was hoping she wasn't going to ask me to do something with her hair… "Sure….."

"Will you….fix my hair for me?" she asked.

I knew it. Was she crazy? Didn't she see how bad I had done the first time? I just looked at her. "Rapunzel, you _do_ see what a horrible job I did."

She didn't deny it, which I must admit deflated my ego a little bit. "But I can't do it myself," she said. "Besides that, I have a pair of scissors that would make it easier for you. And before you were…..you were….." She swallowed, like the words just wouldn't come out.

Unsurprising considering that I was dying the last time I cut her hair. "I know."

She composed herself again. "And anyway I want to look….good for my parents," she continued. "So please?"

I sighed, knowing that I couldn't say no to her. But hopefully I wouldn't mangle her hair too much more. "Oh….all right."

She smiled. "Great! You stay right there, and I'm going to run up to my room and get my scissors." She ran up the stairs and disappeared from sight.

Soon she came back, a pair of scissors in her hand, and then gave them to me. Reluctantly I took them from her. Then she pulled a green chair over to me and then sat down in it. "Okay!" she said. "I'm ready."

"Uh…right," I said. "Any…" _last words before I butcher your hair?_ "Any instructions?"

She giggled. "Oh no," she said. "Just even it out, I guess. I'll know you'll do fine."

"Right…" Just even it out, my foot- like that was simple! I stared at the back of her hair. Well, from what I could tell, in my very non-educated opinion, she now had a number of layers in the back of her hair, though how I had managed to do that with one slice was beyond me. The problem was that they were rather raggedy at the ends, and kind of uneven. Should I start from the top or the bottom? I decided on the top and picked up one of the strands. I kind of winced, as I brought the scissors close to it, and shut one of my eyes….

"Eugene?"

I jumped, but she was lucky that the scissors didn't cut anything. "Yes?"

"It'd probably be easier to cut my hair if you stop looking like you're about to be executed again. Plus, having both eyes open would help you."

I stared at her. "How'd you know I looked like that?"

She giggled again. "Oh, I just did. Besides, I can feel your hesitation. But cutting hair isn't a matter of life and death, you know." Then she gasped, as if she understood what she had just said: cutting her hair the first time _had_ been a matter of life and death…and I had lost. "Oh, Eugene, I'm so sorry. I didn't-…"

I knew she didn't. "No worries, Rapunzel," I said. "It's okay."

I picked up the same strand of hair, and finally made myself snip the end as evenly as I could, and did the same with the rest of the top. Soon there was a small pile of brown locks on the floor.

"Eugene?"

You know something? In actuality cutting her hair wasn't…so bad because then I had an excuse to touch her silky hair (that hadn't changed even though the color had). Once I got the hang of it, it was kind of fun. I started looking at the bottom layers. "Hmmm?"

"Thank you," she said. "I know you didn't want to do this, and I really appreciate it. You're so sweet to me, Eugene."

I didn't know what to say (because I couldn't picture me and the adjective sweet in the same sentence). So I busied myself by cutting the rest of her hair. With a few more snips, I decided that I was finished. "There! I think you're done."

She put her hand to the back of her head. "Really?" she said, as she stood up. "Let's go look!" She grabbed my hand and pulled me up the stairs.

"Uh…Rapunzel," I said. "What-…?" She continued to drag me into what I guessed was her bedroom-and it was so _her_. From what I could see, there were paintings all over the walls, and I was sure that they had all been painted by her. She let go of my hand, and then walked over and straightened her vanity. Then she looked this way and that, making sure she saw all angles of her hair.

"So," I said. "Do you…do you like it?"

She walked over to me, stood on tiptoe, and put her arms around my neck. "I_ love_ it." She kissed my cheek. "Thank you."

I put my arms around her waist. "So do you think I should start a new career as a barber?" I joked.

She made a face that looked almost like a grimace. I guessed that was a negative. "No," she said. "I think you should be a prince." Her cheeks immediately turned thirteen shades of red. I guessed she blushed because she knew the only way I'd become a prince was if I married her. A thought that pleased me immensely, I had to say, but I guessed she was mortified because she was basically saying she'd like to marry me someday. That wasn't too far of a stretch, right?

So even though she was enormously embarrassed, I was enormously happy- marrying her was better than a crown and an island, hands down. Plus, if I married her, wouldn't I get my castle? "Hmm. A prince…Well, that sounds like a fun job- bossing people around all day. But I'd have to find a princess first." I grinned at her. "Do you happen to know any?"

A small giggle escaped from her lips. "Eugene!" she exclaimed. "I only know one princess."

I couldn't help teasing her more; it was just too fun."Really?" I asked wonderingly. "What's she like? Does she have short, adorable brown hair?"

She giggled again. I loved when she laughed like that; it was so cute. "Yes."

"Enormous green eyes?" I continued.

She smiled. "Yes."

Wow, her smile was lovely. "The best smile in the whole world?"

The faintest blush tinted her cheeks. "Yes."

I pretended to consider it. "Hmm," I said. "Now, is her name…Rapunzel?"

Her eyes shone. "Yes."

I grinned at her again. "Well," I concluded. "Then I think that I'd love to play a prince, as long as Rapunzel's my princess."

Her arms moved from my neck to around my waist. "Of course," she said softly. Inadvertently my own arms tightened around her and I thought briefly that it would be just so easy to bend down and kiss her again….

"Eugene?"

Reluctantly I pulled myself back from my dreamland of kissing her. "Hmmm?"

"Do you…do you think we should go now?" she asked.

I blinked. Go…I guessed she meant return to Caermoor to meet her parents. "Oh! Yes, yes we should go."

XXXXXXXXX

Soon we walked down the stairs, and left the tower-for good, this time. I couldn't say that I was too sad about that, because both of my experiences there hadn't been very good. But Rapunzel looked almost sad to leave, and I was sure, because it had been her home for so many years. I didn't know what to say to her, because everything I could think of was either cliché or stupid (or both). So I ended up saying nothing, and squeezed her hand instead. She squeezed my hand back, though she didn't smile at all, much to my chagrin. But she brightened when she saw Max, and let go of my hand to hug him. She immediately started talking to him softly, and though I couldn't hear everything she said, I was certain that she was thanking him for rescuing me, and telling him what a good horse he was.

Patiently I stood there waiting for her to finish, and she finally did. She turned to me. "Eugene, do you think we could ride Max back?"

I didn't see why not. "I think so," I told her. "But you might want to ask him, just because carrying both of us will be heavy."

She nodded, then whispered something into his ear, and seemed to listen as he nuzzled her hair. Then she turned to me again. "I asked him," she said. "And he agreed, though he told me that you owe him apples when we reach Caermoor because you're much heavier than me, and he requires them as payment."

I almost laughed at the absurdity of what she was saying, but I knew that Rapunzel was perfectly serious. And Max was too. "I do believe I can agree to that," I said soberly, trying my best to keep a straight face.

She smiled. "Good," she said. "Because I've never ridden a horse before, and it sounds like so much fun!"

I smiled back. "It is," I said. "And I'll help you up." I helped her unto Max, then mounted behind her.

She looked back at me, puzzled. "Eugene," she said. "Why are you sitting back there? Aren't you going to steer?"

I couldn't help but smirk at her. "Of course I'm going to steer," I told her. "And all I have to do to make sure I steer is this." I snaked my arms around her and took the reins. "See?"

She blushed again. "Yes."

XXXXXXXX

We left soon after that, and I couldn't help but notice the difference in our moods:

Rapunzel was excited to meet her new family-the king and queen.

I was dreading meeting her new family- the king and queen…who just so happened to want to execute me.

Was there any way that this could end well?

* * *

><p>So, before I get any flames about the whole Eugene condescending thing...I can actually see this happening. I can. Mostly because I can see Flynn being condescending, and although he's almost gone, there are still remnants in Eugene.<p>

And as for Rapunzel...Gothel is nothing BUT condescending to her, and so I can see her really resent anybody else acting that way to her, especially because she is so capable and smart as she's proved multiple times in the movie_. _


	17. Rapunzel vs her Dream

AN: Hello again! Just a note to say there will be one more chapter after this and the epilogue, and they might be combined into one chapter, depending on how long they are. and then this story will be done. wow!

Which means if I'm done with this story it's time for another (I can't help it; I'm obsessed) and I have three in my head that are partly written out: 1) the story after this one 2) the AU story for Delilahgirl about what might have happened if Eugene kissed Rapunzel on the boat and 3) the story after UA. Do you have a preference? I have the most work done on the first two (as in I have them almost completely outlined) but i'm working on the third one...

**Paocg**- Aw, I'm glad you liked it :) and thank YOU for reviewing.

**Crystal-ice-fire**- Thanks! :)

**Delilahgirl- **thanks! I'm glad that the "mini-fight" didn't bother you too much. I don't have them fight all the time, but it wouldn't be realistic if they didn't fight at all, you know? nobody is that perfect, and I try to have at least some semblance of reality in my stories. And I love fluff too :)

**Unraised-Clock- **Thanks! I'm very glad it was funny :)

**Playgirl16_- _**Wow, thank you! I'm happy that you like how i write them, because I work pretty hard at that. :)

Thank you for reviewing! 3

FL6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

* * *

><p>Chapter 17- Rapunzel vs. her Dream<p>

"Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within." -James Arthur Baldwin quotes

"One must have a good memory to keep the promises one has made."

-Frederich Nietzsche

_**We**_ hadn't ridden very far before I heard Rapunzel gasp. Naturally I couldn't help but feel slightly alarmed about that. Had she seen something horrible? "Uh….Rapunzel?"

She glanced back at me. "Yes?

"Why were you just gasping like that?" I asked her. "Are you okay?'

She smiled reassuringly at me. "Oh yes, Eugene," she answered. "I'm fine. It's just….I have the best idea- we should go by the Snuggly Duckling and thank them!"

It was a good idea, and classic Rapunzel to think of other people. "Okay….but what about your parents?"

"I know…" she said. "But going and thanking them for what they did is really the least we can do."

She was right about that. After all, they had saved my life: I would be a dead man if it hadn't been for them. And I supposed that if her parents had waited eighteen years for her, they could wait a little longer. "All right," I agreed.

I didn't tell her that I wasn't even sure that they would be there- they might be in prison for helping me.

XXXXXXX

However, and astonishingly enough, they_ were_ there and were very happy to see us (I guessed that if they could break me out, they could break themselves out). Well, they seemed almost indifferent to me (all they said was a brief "Oh, hey Rider"), but they were thrilled to see Rapunzel. They greeted her warmly, and affectionately called her "That sweet blonde little lady." Of course, they were very curious about her hair though, considering it was long and blonde the last time they had seen her, and now it was short and brown. They asked her what happened, and she looked at me questioningly, almost asking my permission to tell the story. To be perfectly honest with you, I was glad that she wanted to tell it, because I sure didn't. I told her emphatically it was all hers.

She basically told them everything, including her healing hair, and her being the princess, and I silently listened (and I drank flip too. Ah… Hey! They _offered_ it to me. What, was I supposed to decline their kind offer and hospitality?). But when she reached the part where I was bleeding and dying, I could hear the heartbreak in her voice and saw the faintest hint of tears in her eyes. So I walked over to her, sat next to her, and took her hand comfortingly. That seemed to encourage her, and she finished the story without another waver. And she was a very good story teller too, almost as good as me.

After she finished, she continued to be the center of attention, and I went to go get my flip again. Somehow thinking about dying and leaving Rapunzel made me want to. While I was over there, Hook Thug came up to me.

"That was a great thing you did for her," he said quietly to me, a hint of new respect for me in his eyes.

I gave him a barely perceptible nod, and I didn't even think of saying something cocky to his apparent compliment. "I guess, but I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

"Really. Why?"

Why? Was he serious? Didn't he know how wonderful Rapunzel was? "She's worth it."

He looked sharply at me. "She's changed you, you know," he said. "You're not the same person that you were two days ago."

Hook Thug was absolutely right about that, but I had to admit that I liked myself better now that I wasn't constantly trying to exploit other people and get their money. Besides, I hadn't lost any of my charm and wit just because I was nicer. "I know, but I think this might be a better model."

"Uh, huh. So, Rapunzel's the lost princess," he said. "What do you think about _that?"_

Ha ha, I wasn't going to tell the truth about that. Maybe somehow what I said would get back to Rapunzel and it might hurt her feelings if she knew that I thought it was horrific. But honestly, I did kind of hate the fact that she was the princess because there was a good chance that I could lose her again. But Flynn, now my alter ego (a little part of my brain that was very hard to shake), was telling me that I was incredibly lucky that Rapunzel was the princess- because there was the possibility that I could become fantastically rich, and I could get all those piles and piles of money.

I told him to shut up and go find some deserted island somewhere so he couldn't bother me anymore. "I think it's stupendous."

He looked like he wanted to laugh. "No, you don't."

"I do so," I protested.

"You don't," he said. "You hate it, because you know that for one, if you go back you could get executed again, and two, princess don't usually marry thieves."

In truth, I had thought the same thing, but he didn't need to know that. "Those thoughts never crossed my mind."

He looked at me skeptically. "Right…."

"Besides," I continued. "Now she'll have a real family, instead of that witch."

He was about to say something, but then Rapunzel came up to us. "Hey," she said. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to ask you something." She stood on tiptoe and started to whisper something in my ear: "Eugene, when do you think we should go?"

I smiled at her. "Pretty soon, I guess. Whenever you want to."

XXXXXXXXXX

Whenever she wanted to ended up being pretty soon after that, but I didn't mind leaving that much because then (and it was selfish of me) it would just be the two of us again. I helped her up on Maximus, and she gave heartfelt goodbyes to all the thugs. She (and I too) both thanked them for what they had done. And then we set off again.

"So," she asked me curiously as we rode away. "What were you and…uh… Mr. Hook talking about?"

Mr. Hook….she's so adorable. I grinned at her, even though I wasn't going to tell her all the ins and outs of our conversation. "You."

She blushed at that. "Oh, stop. You were not."

"Yes," I told her. "We were." Truthfully, we _had_ been talking about her, just not as much as I was making her think we were. But what was I supposed to say? We were almost talking about how much I hate the fact that you're the princess? No way I would tell her that.

"Well," she said. "What did you say about me?"

I couldn't help teasing her a little, and that would take all the seriousness out of the conversation. "How pretty you are."

She giggled and blushed again. "You did not." Clearly she didn't believe that her prettiness was what we were discussing.

And of course she was right. "All right," I admitted. "We didn't, but you _are_ pretty." I caught a look at the sky, which was darkening fast. "And we probably need to camp out again tonight."

She smiled at me, and agreed.

XXXXXXXX

Once we reached our camping site, I tried (unsuccessfully) to light another fire, and she eventually started to laugh at me. Annoyed, I told her that she should try it. Of course, she gamely said yes and lit it on the first try. I was a little befuddled by that, but I took it in stride. After that we ate a little dinner, and once we finished, we sat in silence, staring at the fire. You might find it curious that we were so quiet because we could talk (Okay, I talk more), but we had a lot on our minds: Like she was thinking about her new family, and I was thinking about her new family too- just I was thinking that I hoped they wouldn't kill me. I know that most men feel nervous about the whole "meeting the parents" thing, but my anxiety went to a level far beyond that as I'm sure you can imagine. Eventually though, I glanced over at her, thinking that she looked lovely in the firelight, though she did seem worried about something. "What are you thinking about?"

She sighed. "I'm thinking about tomorrow."

Of course she was thinking about tomorrow. I felt almost like an idiot for not thinking of that, because I was thinking about tomorrow too, and hoping I wouldn't be dead by the end of it. I was no idiot and I knew that by returning to Caermoor, I could end up executed again- and by Rapunzel's parents (doesn't that strike you as slightly ironic?). If I was completely honest, the thought terrified me. "Me too."

She looked at me. "And?"

Clearly, she was asking me how I felt about it, which was a little silly of her. I guess she didn't know yet that often men either weren't "in touch" with their feelings, or if they were, they didn't really talk about them. Besides that, admitting I was scared didn't exactly go with my whole Flynn Rider bravado act. "And…." I sighed, mostly because I was about to give her some Flynn Rider rubbish and she wasn't going to like it. "It would make any other man very…anxious." I paused. "But of course Flynn Ri-…"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her roll her own eyes. "Eugene, stop it," she said.

I played dumb, even though I knew that she didn't like that I wasn't being honest with her. "Stop what?" I asked.

"You know very well what I mean," she said. "Stop with the whole Flynn Rider act."

Oh, Rapunzel. Okay, I'm going to admit to you something now, and I want you to promise you won't repeat it. Promise?

Good. So, I think you're starting to get the sense that Rapunzel doesn't put up with any of my Flynn nonsense. And I actually_ like_ that about her. I_ like_ that she wants me to be myself with her. It's very nice to feel like I don't have to act around her, even though I do anyway sometimes. Some habits are very hard to break. "What?"

"Eugene," she said. "I'm going to tell you something now, and you don't have to say anything right away. I just want you to start thinking about it. Okay?"

Now I had no idea what she was talking about. "Okay…."

"Please don't ever feel like you have to….pretend with me," she said. "If Eugene feels a certain way, don't let _Flynn_ cover it up. I want you to be honest with me, and don't worry that it will change the way I feel about you. Because it won't. All right?"

Unbelievable. Did she know what she was saying? Okay, that was a dumb question; Rapunzel always knew what she was saying- and she always meant what she said too. But still. What I had ever done to deserve somebody as amazing and sweet as her? The amount of love she had for me was inconceivable. It didn't matter what I felt or what I did, she would still care about me the same way. For a long minute, I didn't know what to say at all, and I caught all her concerned glances at me, like she was afraid I was mad or something. How could I possibly be angry with what she said though? "All right," I said at last. _Time to talk about something else_."So," I continued brightly. "Are you ready to become a princess tomorrow?"

A look of surprise crossed her face, then she giggled a little. "Uh…yes. I guess so."

I smiled at her. "Good! Well, Princess, if you're going to wow everyone tomorrow, then you'd better get some beauty sleep."

"Are you saying I'm not beautiful now?" she asked sweetly.

I couldn't resist the opportunity to tease her again. "Well, actually..." I began.

She swatted my arm. "Eugene!"

"I'm kidding!" Of course I was. Rapunzel was probably the prettiest girl I had ever seen. Her hair was beautifully brown, her eyes were stunningly huge and green, she was becomingly slim….basically perfect in every way. I didn't love her because she was beautiful, but she was even more beautiful because I _did_ love her. "You know I think you're absolutely beautiful," I said, as I softly caressed her cheek.

"Even as a brunette?" she whispered.

Of course I did. I loved her brown hair; I had cut her brown hair. Her new haircut made her look sophisticated and just generally stunning. "Especially as a brunette." I couldn't help it; I kissed her again. And naturally she kissed me back. Why would she do anything else?

XXXXXXXXX

Soon after that, we said good night, and went to our own separate spots. Once again, I made sure there was space between us. I fell asleep fast, mostly because something about dying had really tuckered me out. And I thought of my lovely Rapunzel…..

But ascream woke me out of a deep sleep. "NO!"

That was Rapunzel. I immediately rushed over to her, and she tossed restlessly in her sleep. "NO!" Sure she was having a horrible nightmare, I put my hands on her shoulders and shook her awake."Rapunzel!" She cracked her eyes open, and they were wide with terror. Then she let out a strangled cry, threw her arms around my neck, and buried her face in my chest. Heartbroken sobs wracked her body. For a second I just sat there, unsure of what to do, but then I put my arms around her comfortingly and stroked her hair. "Everything's going to be fine," I whispered in her ear. She kept crying, and it was soon clear to me that something was upsetting her beyond just a bad dream. But each sob was like another dagger in my side, and I wished I could do more to help her. All I could do was keep holding her and whispering things like "Everything's okay" and "I'm here" to her, hoping that it would help her feel better.

Eventually she stopped crying, much to my relief. "Thank you, Eugene," she said in a shaky voice.

I pulled away slightly so I could see her eyes. They were still teary and red. "Mmm," I said, because saying you're welcome to that seemed silly, as if I hadn't liked holding her and it was some kind of burden. "Rapunzel, did you have a nightmare?" A barely perceptible nod. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"

For a minute, she didn't say anything. "I was..," she said finally. "I was…back in the tower. With…_her_. And…I had to watch her stab you…over and over and over…"

That sounded absolutely terrible. Poor, poor Rapunzel…I should have known that watching me die would emotionally harm her. Could there be anything worse than having the person you love die in your arms? I held her close to me again. "It was awful," I heard her whisper.

I was sure that it had been. But what could I tell her that would make her feel better? I tried to think from her perspective: My dying meant…I'd left her- willingly or not. And she didn't want me to; that much was clear to me. So maybe if I told her I wouldn't ever leave her, she'd feel less sad. "Hey," I said gently. "Let me tell you something."

Another tear trickled down her cheek. "What?"

"I just want you to know that-as long as I can help it- I will not ever leave you again," I told her.

She sniffled and rubbed a hand across her eyes. "Really?"

"Yes," I said. "Never ever."

She looked at me soberly. "You….promise?"

I knew how seriously she took promises-both ones she made and ones others made. The thing that would assure her the most would be if I did promise it. In reality, it was an easy one to make, too. "Yes."

"And when you promise something, you never break that promise?" she asked.

I had a feeling she didn't know how many promises I had broken over the past ten years._ I_ didn't even know how many promises I had broken- because I had stopped counting once I reached the hundreds. "Well…..no," I admitted. "It used to be one of my favorite pastimes to see how many I could wrangle myself out of." She almost laughed at that. "But this one," I continued. "I won't ever break." And see the nice thing about this promise was that I really, honestly, and truly meant it with all of my heart.

Her eyes were solemn again. "Well, I won't either."

It was nice to know that she basically promised to never leave me either, but the mood was getting much too serious for me. "Of course not," I joked. "Why would you want to?"

This time, she laughed and I felt better. She couldn't be still really sad if she could laugh, right? Then she smiled. "I wouldn't," she said softly. "Eugene?"

"Hmmm?" I said.

"I think I'm ready to sleep again."

Huh. I wasn't going to let her do it; she needed to stay awake, at least a bit more. "No, Rapunzel," I told her, feeling like her older brother, in addition to being her love. "I'd feel better if you stayed awake longer, just because of how bad your dream was."

She frowned a little, but she did what I asked, though it wasn't much more than twenty minutes before she started yawning so much that I gave in. She went and lay down again, and I sat up because I was concerned about her. I watched her in the dark as she curled up, and her face grew completely peaceful- as if she wasn't anxious about anything.

But I still worried about her, even after I heard her steady breathing and knew she was asleep again. I thought something bad might happen to her if I fell asleep, which was completely irrational. First of all, both the Stabs were still in jail, and Gothel was gone and they were the ones who would hurt her. Second, her magic hair was gone so no one would want to kidnap her. And no one knew she was the princess but me. I kept tossing around, and eventually it got so annoying that I sat up again, wondering what would help _me_ calm down.

Finally, I crept close to her, put my arm around her, and held her close to me. I felt my anxiety ease. There. If anyone tried to hurt her, they'd wake me up, and I'd be able to protect her.

Assured now of her safety, I drifted off to sleep.


	18. Rapunzel vs the Guards

**AN: **So another long period without updating. Thanks for being patient! I started working and volunteering this week, so I'm very busy. This is the last chapter, but I'll probably write some sort of short epilogue just to make sure all loose ends are tied up for you.

Do you have a preference of what story I write next? If you do, please message me or write which one you'd like in your review.

Thank you for your loyal following of this story! I hope you liked reading it as much I loved writing it. :)

Daydreamerxo15- thanks! i'm glad you like it.

Over the Weather- Rapunzel _is _so sweet. Eugene is very lucky to have her. :)

UnraisedClock-aw, thanks! I just thought that she might want to thank them because they basically saved Eugene from being hung. Originally, I actually wrote that they went to the Snuggly Duckling in BA to use up time so I could write her having a nightmare. Silly, isn't it? Haha.

Kaydee-Thanks! I'm glad you liked them. did you have a fun time camping? I hope it wasn't too hot!

Delilahgirl- good pun. Very punny. Well, I couldn't see him NOT worried about it, because he doesn't want to die again. and truthfully I really couldn't blame him.

Crystalicefire- Thanks!

FL6

Disclaimer-I do not own Tangled.

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 18-Rapunzel vs. the Guards<strong>_

_Nothing compares to the precious- and priceless- gift of a family. _

**The** next morning we both woke up early and headed toward Caermoor (on Maximus of course. Though Rapunzel told me he demanded more apples now as payment). You might find this surprising, but we didn't talk much then either. We were both too occupied with thoughts of meeting her parents. For me, the ride couldn't last long enough, but eventually we drew near the castle. I heard Rapunzel sigh deeply. "Hey…everything okay?" I asked her.

"I'm….I'm fine," she said.

Yeah. She was fine….and the sky was purple too. "No, you're not."

She glanced back at me. "And how do you know, Mr. Socrates?"

That was the second time in two days I'd been called that. What was up with him anyway? "Well, Rapunzel, it's pretty obvious to me that you're nervous about this."

She sighed again. "I am," she said softly. "I have…I have a new family, Eugene. I'm supposed to be a princess. And I don't know anything about being one."

My arms tightened around her-as if I could somehow make her feel better. "Rapunzel, honestly you act like a princess already. And I'm sure anything you don't know, they'll teach you."

"You mean like princess lessons?" she asked.

Probably. "Yes, I think so."

Her eyes were thoughtful. "Hmmm."

Silence descended between us once more, until we reached the castle-which was absolutely surrounded by guards. Stupendous.

Trying to act normally, I dismounted and then helped Rapunzel down. As I did, and held her in my arms, she whispered something to me. "Don't worry, Eugene," she said. "I won't let them put you in jail; I promise."

I forced myself to smile at her, but part of me doubted that she could do too much to stop it. I knew she would try her best though, because she had promised- and if she promised something, she would never break it.

Still, I wasn't sure what she could do. I didn't know how she thought this might go, but there was the distinct possibility that the guards wouldn't believe that she was the princess, and then she could do nothing to prevent me from being thrown in jail again. I glanced over at the guards, and it was clear by the way they were talking that they had spotted me. One of them looked like Irwin. I nearly groaned to myself because I clearly remembered how horribly he had treated me. Well, this was turning out splendidly- I got to be at the mercy of somebody who couldn't be a bigger jerk.

Irwin and the Captain walked over to me. "Well, well, well," said Irwin mockingly. (Just between me and you I really hate that guy). "If it isn't Flynn Rider. Came for another trip to jail?"

I felt Rapunzel's hands on my shoulders, as if to protect me- which of course shows how nice she is, but she couldn't save me from them. Could she?

Anyway, in any case, I hadn't come for another trip to jail, thanks. And I didn't mind telling him so. "Well, actually-…" I began.

Irwin ignored me. Figures. "Because that's where all criminals like you belong," he said. Then he noticed Rapunzel and sneered. "What, you need your little girlfriend to protect you?"

What, and I thought he couldn't be any ruder. I guess I was wrong. Rapunzel said later that he was being very unprofessional too.

Luckily, the Captain called him out on it. After a short pause, he cleared his throat. "That's enough, Irwin. Remember your job."

He nodded, managed to pull me away from Rapunzel and toward the jail. His hands yanked my arms behind me in an almost death grip. As they were about to cuff my hands behind my back and haul me off, I threw absolutely panicked looks in Rapunzel's direction. _Rapunzel, help!_

She nodded, rushed over to me, and placed herself between me (and consequently Irwin) and the Captain. "No!" she said. "Please don't. You can't arrest him."

The Captain smiled at her…though it seemed like a condescending smile to me. Like who was this little nobody and why is she telling me what to do? "Certainly I can. Now move please. "

Of course, he underestimated who he was dealing with, because she could be absolutely fierce when she wanted to. Rapunzel held her ground. "No, you can't do this."

His face expressed great annoyance. "Lady, I'm not sure if you know who I am or who this is. I'm Edward Wallace, the Captain of the Guard…and this man is Flynn Rider, the most wanted thief in Corona."

Rapunzel drew herself up regally…almost like a princess. "I understand who both of you are," she said in a soft, but absolutely firm voice. "But I don't think you know who_ I_ am. And I'm telling you that you can't arrest him-not today in any event."

He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Really. And just who are you?" He stared her down.

She stared at him right back. "I'm Rapunzel," she said. "Your lost princess."

He looked at her for a minute, then laughed- laughed literally right in her face. "Right….and I'm the King of Siam." Then he gestured toward me. "How much did he pay you to say that?"

Rapunzel's face was shocked for a minute, but then two red spots appeared in her cheeks. And I knew she was mad, but I wasn't sure if she was mad that he was mocking her, or at the insinuation that I had paid her off (though in all honesty, finding some girl to impersonate the princess so I could get out of jail actually _might_ have been something I would do before I met Rapunzel). Regardless, her eyes started to flash, and it was obvious to me that she was furious. _Uh-uh, Captain_, I thought to myself. _You don't want to see her mad, especially around a frying pa_n. "How dare you!" she cried. "He didn't pay me anything! How much do they pay _you_ to be a bully?"

Well, I had to say that it was actually fun to watch Rapunzel yell at somebody who wasn't me. She was so brave and gutsy! He drew himself up proudly, because I guess that he didn't think that being called a bully was necessarily an insult. "Well, not nearly enough, but that's really none of your business. Besides, I do a good job." Then he started talking down to her, and it was a good thing Irwin was still holding me, otherwise I would have punched him the eye for talking to her like that. "What's a nice girl like you hanging around the likes of him anyway? Why don't you run home to your mother? And leave Flynn Rider to us."

The two red spots in her cheeks increased, because, as I had already found out, there was nothing she hated more than when somebody talked condescendingly to her. In this case, I really couldn't blame her: the Captain was talking to her like she was five. Besides, he just insulted _me _too. Of course she wouldn't like that. "This _is _my home," she insisted. "Because I _am_ the lost princess. And I won't go anywhere without Eugene."

He continued to look skeptical and their little tete-a-tete (no, you aren't-yes, I am) would probably have continued if somebody else hadn't come over and joined our little party.

Yes, you're right. Luke came over to us, thankfully (between me and you, I really like that guy). "What's the trouble here?" he asked the Captain.

He harrumphed, like the grump he was. "Nothing," he told Luke. "Except this girl here won't let us arrest Rider. Claims to be the lost princess."

He looked over at me, and understanding dawned in his eyes. "Rapunzel?" he said softly. He remembered from our conversation in the jail! Luke is, without a doubt, the nicest guard I've ever met.

"Yeah, that's right," said the Captain with a nod.

Luke studied Rapunzel, and then whispered something to the Captain. Irwin continued to hold me in a death grip, but he looked quiet interested in what they were saying. But it didn't seem like he could hear them. Lucky for me, though, I have perfect hearing and heard what he said. "With all due respect, Captain, haven't you noticed how much Rapunzel looks like the Queen? She has the same green eyes, same brown hair?" The Captain muttered something indistinguishable. "I know," continued Luke. "But think of the King and Queen. Surely they'll know…..Can't you just give her a chance and take her to them?"

He harrumphed again. "Well, it's against by better judgment….but fine. Take them to their majesties. But if she turns out to be a fake, Rider here goes back in jail. Do you understand me?" he said to both to us.

Rapunzel beamed. "That seems fair to me."

I guess it was, but what would happen if she didn't convince her parents? Maybe we _both_ would be thrown in jail.

XxXxXxXx

Soon Luke took us to a balcony overlooking the sea and informed us that he was going to inform one of the palace guards to tell their majesties that Rapunzel was here. After he left, Rapunzel smiled at me. "See, Eugene," she said. "I promised that I wouldn't let them throw you in jail."

She was right, though it had been a close call. And if it hadn't been for Luke….In that minute, I knew that I needed to go thank him sometime soon too. "Yes," I said. "Thank you."

She nodded, but then the smile vanished from her face and my own spirits fell. "Hey," I said softly to her. "What's wrong?"

"I'm nervous," she whispered as she anxiously chewed on her lip. "What if they don't remember me?"

I took her hand comfortingly. "Don't worry," I said. "They will." They _had_ to, and I tried not to think about what might happen if they didn't….

We stood like that, hand in hand, for a pleasant minute, and she gripped my fingers tightly- almost as if she was taking strength from me. I was more than happy to give it to her because I wanted to help her in any way I could. Soon, though, she heard the creak of a door. We both turned toward it, and she pulled her hand out of mine.

The King and the Queen walked unto the balcony, and stared at Rapunzel for a long moment. Then the Queen started walking out to her, and Rapunzel tentatively stepped out to meet her.

As I watched the Queen approach her, I knew Rapunzel had nothing to worry about: because she looked _just_ like her mother. They had the same brown hair, the same big green eyes…and I was sure that the Queen was fully aware now that her daughter had returned to her at last. How could she not when Rapunzel was practically her twin? She touched Rapunzel's face tentatively, then wrapped her arms around her. Rapunzel let out a happy sob, and embraced her mother- her _real _mother, a mother who would actually love her like she deserved. I know that some who hear Rapunzel's story think that Gothel loved Rapunzel, but I was never able to believe that after personally seeing how condescendingly she treated Rapunzel. In my opinion, the only thing Gothel loved about Rapunzel was her hair. And to me, Rapunzel was the kind of girl who could never be loved enough, especially after Gothel nearly destroyed her life. Ugh, it still makes me so furious to think about…

Ahem. Right. So I could rant all day about how much I loathe Gothel, but then you wouldn't hear the rest of the story. So, anyway, Rapunzel and her mother hugged each other, but soon the King let out a happy chuckle and put his arms around both Rapunzel and the Queen. All three of the sank to the ground in their joyful embrace.

While I looked at Rapunzel and her parents hug, I was so happy for her. And even if I was thrown in jail tomorrow, bringing her back to her family would have been worth it. And even if I was hung the day after that, bring her back here would have been worth it because if something ever happened to me, she had her family now and they would watch over her for me.

But even as happy as I was for her (and incredibly enough), I also felt almost jealous of her. I said I cared about Rapunzel, and yet I was envious of her?

Um. Well….Yeah. I_ was_ jealous of her, and the fact that she had a family that loved her. Rapunzel belonged with them, and I knew that she'd be very happy. I was happy for her too because she really should have this after the horrible "mother" she had in Gothel. Besides that, Rapunzel must have been terribly lonely too, trapped up in that tower, with only a chameleon for company for so many years. She deserved to have a real family after all she had been through and she would never be alone again- not with her parents and me around.

Still I couldn't shake my envy. Ugh, sometimes I really hated myself. I felt very stupid – because of course I hated myself often when I was Flynn, but I didn't expect to hate myself when I was Eugene- because although Eugene was still charming, witty, and clever, he actually was nice to people and wasn't jealous of his beau.

In truth, though, I had constantly wanted the same thing that Rapunzel had now. I had always felt so lonely growing up especially after my mother died (and as I've told you, my father wasn't part of the picture). Naturally, the stigma of my last name didn't help anything either. And the thing is? Being alone is _horrible_.It really, really is, and it's something that people who grew up with loving families never understand. Living with no one caring about you was like having an empty hole inside your chest that no matter what you did or what you tried, you couldn't ever fill it. And believe me, I had attempted to do that with all my Flynn Rider shenanigans and it never worked. The only time I felt better and whole was when I let Rapunzel into my heart and she was everything to me now. She had helped ease the utter loneliness I had felt. I couldn't lose her; I just couldn't.

Suddenly I noticed the Queen smiling up at me (of course I noticed how much her smile was like Rapunzel's) and extended a hand toward me. I took her hand, thinking that she wanted to thank me for bringing back her daughter. I also smiled a little, because what she was doing was so nice- and so like Rapunzel. But much to my surprise, she grabbed my hand and pulled me into their hug….as if she was welcoming me into their family.

As I put my arms around Rapunzel, I felt at peace because for once it seemed like I belonged-here, with her, forever and always.

And that would always be better than chasing down some silly daydream.


	19. Epilogue

**_AN: _**epilogue! It's kind of short, but I kind of like it, and it fits in with the prologue pretty well.

So I've been thinking about what story I wanted to write next, and inspiration hit in the most unexpected place-something I wrote myself in this story in the last chapter: "And I knew she was mad, but I wasn't sure if she was mad that he was mocking her, or at the insinuation that I had paid her off (though in all honesty, finding some girl to impersonate the princess so I could get out of jail actually might have been something I would do before I met Rapunzel)." So I was thinking...what if he did go looking for some girl to impersonate the princess so he could get reward money? But what if instead of being a princess, Rapunzel was the daughter of another type of nobility, like an Earl? And what if they lived in modern-day England? What would their story have looked like then? I don't know about you, but this possible story thrills me because i love, love, LOVE England and Britishness, and I don't think that this has actually been done a million times before. I've actually written bits of it, and I'm going to stick it at the end so you can tell me if it picques your interest. er

Thank you for your loyal support of this story! you guys are awesome, and you've been so encouraging to me :)

Unraised Clock: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. And as for more Tangled stories from me...well, I have 4 possible stories about them in my head that want to be written out. So I'm going to keep writing about them :)

Over the Weather: Aren't they though? I love writing them because they're so cute. And I'm glad Eugene...sounds like a normal person, though i'm not sure why he wouldn't. I just thought if I were him, I'd be a little jealous of Rapunzel because I'd always wanted a family too, and that's what his face in that scene said to me. And that's what I wrote.

Delilahgirl: Ah, you caught that, did you? and yes, that was completely intential to make the story seem all tied together. Here's your epilogue, though it's pretty short :)

KayDee: I kind of don't like the guards, so I always write them getting their butts kicked. haha. I'm glad you liked it.

Reverend Lovejoy: Yep, Luke wanted to make a return, so I made him show up. Plus, I like him a lot :) Irwin IS a jerk, haha, and I think he's probably one of those guards with the big nose. I'm glad you liked Rapunzel's confrontation and the name I gave him. YAY

Bagel-chan: Thank you :)

LOVE to you loyal readers- thank you for s haring Eugene's journey and story with me :)

FL6

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><p><strong><em>Epilogue<em>**

So we've reached the end of my story. What did you think?  
>I know. I<em> am<em> a very good story teller. And I know Rapunzel and my story is a dramatic and interesting one. But honestly, that's not what I was asking.

What I really want to know is…have I convinced you of how much I really do care for your princess? Really? I have? You truly believe that I love her? Wow, finally. My life is going to be so much easier now that I've gotten you to stop slandering about me. It only took my dying to convince you. Honestly. But I do love her enough to die for her- again if I had to. She's just so….sweet, smart, sympathetic, kind. She's beautiful too, but I think you already know that. You know, talking about her makes me want to marry her…tomorrow. Too bad there are still a few months to wait….

You have two more things to say? Okay, I'm listening….Hmm. So you still think I'm not good enough for her? Well, in truth, I can actually understand that because sometimes I think the same thing. I'm a orphan, ex-thief. She's a princess. The discrepancy is clear. But the reality is, that to her, I am. She thinks I'm enough for her, and she loves me. And she tells me so all the time.

And your second thing is? You want to know what happened after that? Well, here's the short version- we're living, as Rapunzel would say, happily ever after. And the long version? Now that's another story for another day. But right now I have an appointment with my fiancée. Another time, all right? Anytime you want to hear it, just let me know and I'll gladly tell you, okay? Because honestly there's nothing I like better than talking about me and Rapunzel.

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><p><em>Preview of possible story called Secrets and Lies<em>

_As soon as I entered the flat, Eddie pounced on me. "Flynny! What's up with the girl?"_

_Some people think Flynny is an acceptable nickname for Flynn. I, of course, do not share that opinion. I frowned at him. "I found her outside our flat. Looked like she smacked her head on the ground." I laid her gently on the couch._

_"And you decided to bring her back? You getting soft, Flynnster?"_

_Some people also think that Flynnster is an acceptable nickname. "No, Robert." Eddie's full name is Lord Edward Robert Wentworth III, and he hates his middle name. So of course that's why I call him that. "I'm not getting soft." I walked over to the kitchen and pulled out a photograph. "Don't you see any similarity between Unnamed Girl here and poor, long-lost Lady Amelia Dashwood? Whose family happens to be offering a reward for the safe return of their daughter, to the amount of, let's see, 1.5 million pounds?"_

_He stared at me for a minute, and then he started to slowly smile. Because of course he fully understood the meaning behind my words. "Flynnster, I love how your twisted mind works."_

_I grinned back. "Me too, Bobbert. Me too."_

_He frowned. "How many times have I told you not to call me that? My name is Eddie, Flynnster!"_

_"And how many times have I told not to call me Flynny or Flynnster, my name is Flynn?"_

_"A million," he answered. "And every time I say I know, but calling you Flynnster is too much fun."_

_"Right," I said. "And I feel the same about calling you Robert, and Bobbert."_

_He sighed. "You know, we're never going to get anywhere on this, Flynny."_

_"Quite right, ol' Bob-bob. Quite right." Unnamed Girl started to stir. "Looks like Sleeping Beauty's waking up."_

_Unnamed Girl was indeed waking up, but amazingly enough as soon as she sat up, she took one look at us, and pulled something out of her bag. I blinked. Was I seeing things, or was that a frying pan?_

_Well. This was going to be interesting. She held it out in front of her. "Who are you both?" she asked firmly. "And where did you find me?"_

_I exchanged dubious looks with Eddie. And for once in both of our lives, we didn't know what to say._

_She walked over to Eddie and me and gripped the frying pan more tightly. "Who are you, and how did you find me?"_

_Eddie cleared his throat. "Well, I'm Eddie, and this is Flynns-…" I elbowed him in the ribs. Hard._

_"….I'm Flynn Rider," I finished. "It's nice to meet you,….?"_

_That was her cue to tell us her name, but she didn't seem to understand that. "Who else did you tell?" she demanded. "How did you know about me?"_

_Boy, this girl needed to take an anti-anxiety medication. She would make herself sick if she kept this up."Look," I said to her. "I have no idea what you're talking about, but you need to calm down."_

_Eddie held up his half-empty bottle. "Guinness?"_

_I frowned at him, but he just shrugged. "What? It always calms me down."_

_Well, that was true enough- if he drank too much, you wouldn't see him awake until about 2 or 3 the next afternoon. But I didn't think it would help Unnamed Girl very much. For the first time, I actually noticed how long her hair was. It was braided, blond, and almost trailed on the floor. "Listen, Braid-…."_

_"Rapunzel," she corrected, sounding almost annoyed._

_Despite my best efforts, I couldn't resist a snicker. From what I heard next to me, it didn't seem like Eddie could either. "Fitting," I said. "Quite fitting. Your mummy or daddy must be psychic. That, and have one strange sense of humor."_

_"Or just too obsessed with Grimm," muttered Eddie._


End file.
